Lost Ranger
by Dana1
Summary: Retrieving the Power Coin from Zedd and Rita was only the beginning of their problems. Sequel to Lost Coin
1. Prologue

Title: Lost Ranger

Author: Dana

Rating: PG-13 (to be safe)

Warnings: Ranger violence maybe some curse words.

Summary: Retrieving the Power Coin from Zedd and Rita was only the beginning of their problems.

Author's note: This is a sequel to Lost Coin. I know I know I shouldn't be starting another fic. Blame the stupid muses who do not want me to sleep.

Required reading: Lost Coin

Disclaimer: I do not own anyone that you recognize.

"_Tommy power down!" _

Tommy Oliver could hear the voice but he didn't know where it was coming from. Everything around him was dark. He suddenly saw a light coming from far away so he started walking toward it.

It seemed no matter how far he walked, he wasn't getting any closer to the light. He started running towards the light.

"_Tommy can you hear me?" Another voice asked._

As soon as he emerged from the dark he found himself at the end of a cliff. He backed up quickly afraid he was going to fall off of the cliff.

"What are you doing here?" A voice asked from somewhere to his left. He turned and saw a man sitting at the edge of the cliff staring at what appeared to be nothing.

"Who are you?" Tommy asked not recognizing the person.

"I'm…not important." The man answered. "You shouldn't be here Tommy," he said as he turned around and stood up. He was a few inches taller then Tommy and he was dressed all in black in contrast to all of his white. Tommy noticed that his light brown hair was short and spiked at the top.

Pain flared through Tommy as he was forced to power down.

"I'm sorry," the man said before everything disappeared.

Tommy sat up and gasped as more pain went through his body. He found the other Rangers standing there staring at him.

"What happened?" He asked.

DDD

Notes: Just a little teaser. The first chapter starts before this. This idea probably has been overdone but I thought it would be interesting if it were this character


	2. Physical Therapy

Notes: This takes place about two weeks before the prologue.

"How's the knee?" Jane Holland asked as Tommy entered the room at a physical therapy office in downtown Angel Grove. Jane was his physical therapist.

"Still gets sore if I walk a lot." Tommy answered.

She made note. "Hop on the table so I can check it out," she instructed. Tommy did as asked. Jane spent the next five minutes evaluating his knee. She consulted his file before saying, "I know it may not seem like it, but you are making progress."

Tommy nodded. "I just wish it would heal faster."

She sat down on a stool next to him. "I know you want to get back to your martial arts but please understand that everyone heels differently."

Tommy nodded. "I understand." He did understand but he hated being on the sidelines. Zordon said he wouldn't clear him for Ranger duty until he finished the physical therapy on his knee.

He had injured his knee while practicing a kata. He had been told he had suffered a minor injury but the physical therapy seemed to be taking forever.

"Are you wearing the knee brace?" Jane asked.

"I only take if off for baths as you instructed."

"Good," Jane said with a smile. "Well we better get started."

An hour later Tommy left the physical therapy building. He got in his truck and drove to the juice bar. When he entered it, he found it crowded with the normal after school crowd. He sat at a table with Aisha and Billy.

"How did physical therapy go?" Aisha asked.

"Okay," Tommy said, "she thinks I man only need a couple more sessions."

"That is fantastic," Billy said and then dropped his voice; "we really miss you in battle."

"I miss it too," Tommy said. He moved one of the chairs closer and propped up his leg.

"Do you need any ice?" Ernie asked as he came over with a tray of drinks. He set them in front of Billy and Aisha.

"That would be great Ernie," Tommy answered. Jane had suggested it but he had forgotten.

"I'll be right back," Ernie said before walking away.

Tommy watched as Adam and Rocky worked with a beginner karate class. It was the class that Tommy usually taught with Adam but Rocky was filling in for him while he was hurt.

"Here's the ice," Ernie said coming up to them. He set the ice pack on the table.

"Thanks Ernie," Tommy said as he arranged the ice pack on his knee.

"You're welcome." Ernie said, "I also brought you a strawberry smoothie figuring you needed one."

"Thanks Ernie," Tommy said with a smile.

Tommy settled back and watched the class continue yearning to be out there teaching the class.

* * *

><p>Rito Repulso scowled while he stared at his sister. She was still mad at him for his 'allowing' Kat to retrieve the White Ranger coin. It wasn't his fault that Kat's massage had put him to sleep. His shoulders had still hurt from the last Ranger fight.<p>

"Rito are you even listening to me," Rita thundered.

"Yeah I'm listening," Rito lied. Yada yada yada. Rito thought as he half listened to Rita's lecture. He wished she would just shut up. He was very glad when she turned her attention to Goldar.

He walked out of the throne room and teleported to the park. He sat on one of the playground swings hoping to be ignored. Sometimes he just had to get out of the Moon Palace.

He ignored the screaming and just swung on the swing. He had a brief memory flash of being in a park before but it was gone almost immediately.


	3. Rito Just Wants to Have Fun

Zedd stood on the moon watching the park in annoyance. What was that bumbling idiot doing? He wondered.

"Rita!" He yelled.

Rita came up to him looking even more annoyed then him. "What? I've got a splitting headache."

"Look!" Zedd said pointing Rita's scope down at the park for her to see. "What is your idiotic brother doing?"

"Swinging." She said. "Swinging?" Her brother was very strange but this was strange even for him.

"I can see that Rita," Zedd thundered. "I want to know why. I didn't send him down to the park. Did you?"

"No! I don't know why Rito does half of the things he does. Let him swing. It gets him off the moon for a while. Maybe the Rangers will destroy him." She said and walked away. She was still mad at her brother for losing the White Ranger coin. Having that coin gave them an advantage. They would have to settle with having Ninjor.

Zedd watched his wife leave knowing she had a point. He smiled at the idea of the Rangers getting rid of his brother-in-law. He'd probably thank them personally if they did so. He went and sat on his throne plotting his next move.

* * *

><p>"Sensei Tommy!" A few voices called as soon as the class was over. They rushed over to the table where Tommy was sitting at.<p>

"When are you coming back?" Brad asked.

"As soon as they say I can." Tommy said with a smile. He was glad to see his students missed him as much as he missed them. "I miss all of you guys."

"We miss you too." Brad said. Brad waited until the others walked away before saying, "I'm sorry you hurt your knee. If I hadn't been pestering you about that kata…"

"Brad it wasn't your fault," Tommy said. "I wasn't feeling well and wasn't concentrating. I should have listened to my body." He said with a smile. "That's one thing you'll learn from karate. Listen to your body when it tells you something's wrong."

"I guess," Brad said. He saw his older sister, Marissa, standing there waiting for him. "I've got to go," he said and walked away.

"Though I'm to blame," Kat said joining them.

"You are not to blame Kat," Aisha said. "You were under a powerful spell."

"But I was the one who took Tommy's power coin," Kat reminded them.

"Kat I've already forgiven you for that," Tommy said. "Same as the other Rangers did when I was under Rita's spell. Everything turned out fine. I have my power coin back and you are no longer under Rita and Zedd's spell. My knee's going to get better and I'll be back fighting the monsters. Also, from what I've seen, you've been doing great in the battles with Rita and Zedd's monsters."

"I've made a ton of mistakes though," Kat said looking down.

"We all make mistakes," Billy said. "It takes time to become acquainted with being a Power Ranger."

"I guess," Kat said.

The communicators went off.

The Rangers stood up and went to their usual corner of the Youth Center. Adam and Rocky who had been exiting the locker room when their communicators had gone off soon joined them.

They double-checked the area before Tommy raised his communicator. "We read you Zordon."

"RANGERS RITO IS IN THE PARK. YOU MUST STOP HIM. TOMMY I INSIST THAT YOU TELEPORT TO THE COMMAND CENTER IMMEDIATELY."

Tommy sighed. Zordon knew him too well. "You guys better go take care of Rito," Tommy said before teleporting to the Command Center.

"Ninja Ranger Power now!" Rocky yelled.

They quickly changed into their Ninjetti costumes and teleported to the park.

When they arrived at the park they found Rito still swinging on the swing seemingly oblivious to the Rangers.

"What are you doing Rito?" Aisha demanded.

"Leave me alone," Rito said as he continued swinging. "I'm not bothering anybody."

The Rangers exchanged looks. Rito was just having fun? That seemed wrong to all of them. The monsters always seemed bent on destroying Angel Grove. They never teleported down just to swing. Rito had to be up to something.

"What should we do?" Kat asked. "He's not really harming anyone."

"I guess we just wait to make sure he doesn't do anything," Rocky said. "He's bound to do something."

"Why don't you Rangers scram?" Rito called from the swing.

The Rangers exchanged looks but didn't leave.

* * *

><p>Tommy stood in the Command Center looking up at Zordon. "Are there any other monsters in Angel Grove?' He asked. Like his teammates, he was trying to figure out what Rita and Zedd were up to.<p>

"NOT THAT WE CAN DETECT TOMMY," Zordon answered. He was just as puzzled as his Rangers. "WE WILL KEEP AN EYE ON EARTH FOR ANY SIGNS OF TROUBLE."

Tommy nodded and turned back to staring at the viewing globe.

"THERE IS A REASON I CALLED YOU UP HERE THOUGH TOMMY," Zordon said. "HOW IS PHYSICAL THERAPY GOING?"

"Okay I guess," Tommy answered. "Jane says I may only need a few more sessions."

"I AM GLAD TO HERE THAT," Zordon said. "I KNOW YOU WERE NOT HAPPY WITH ME NOT ALLOWING YOU TO REJOIN THE TEAM BUT TOMMY IT IS FOR YOUR OWN GOOD. I COULDN'T RISK YOU INJURING YOUR KNEE WORSE."

"I understand Zordon," Tommy answered, "I just wish I was out there with the others even if it is just to watch Rito swing."

"IT IS ALWAYS DIFFICULT TO BE ON THE SIDELINES TOMMY. I MUST ASK YOU ABOUT YOUR COIN. HOW HAVE YOU BEEN FEELING SINCE YOU WERE REUNITED WITH YOUR COIN?"

"I feel fine," Tommy said, "I mean other then my knee hurting, I feel the way I did before Rita and Zedd took my coin." Tommy hoped Zordon couldn't tell he was lying. There were times when his hands would start shaking and he couldn't figure out why. He was also falling asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow. Something wasn't quite right but it was in no way like he was when his coin was missing.

"I AM VERY GLAD TO HEAR THAT," Zordon said. They returned to watching the viewing globe.

* * *

><p>"This is ridiculous," Zedd said to no one in particular. If it was a fight that the Rangers wanted it was a fight they were going to get. "Tengas go down to the park," he ordered.<p>

The birds' teleported down to the park.

The Rangers jumped back in surprise as the Tengas appeared in front of them.

"Good!" Rito said. "Now you guys can leave me alone."

The Rangers battled the Tengas and it wasn't long before the birds were defeated.

'Rito!'

Rito grimaced at the mental yell from his sister.

"What?" He yelled back. The Rangers were staring at him strangely.

"Get back to the moon now!"

"Fine! You don't have to yell." He said before teleporting away.

The Rangers exchanged looks a bit shocked by Rito's behavior. They powered down and walked back to the Youth Center.

* * *

><p>Notes: You guys have no idea how much fun I am having writing this fic.<p> 


	4. Switched

Notes: This takes place a few days after the last chapter.

"Rito!" Rita thundered, "get in here now!"

Rito walked into the throne room and found his sister standing there, looking annoyed but that was nothing new.

"What?" He asked.

"You are going to make it up to me for losing the coin," she said turning away and looked at the perch where the Crane Zord sat in its animal form. At least she still had that and Ninjor she thought with satisfaction.

"How? You want me to go and steal it back?" He asked.

"Yes that's precisely what I want you to do," Rita said turning around to face him.

"Uh don't you think they'll be expecting that?" Rito asked. "They'll know it was us and will probably be watching it closely."

Rita frowned. When did her brother start thinking? He usually did what he was told without even questioning it. It was like having another Goldar. "I've already thought of that," she said as she held her hand up. She picked up her wand and with a flash of light, a coin landed in her hand. On the coin was the symbol of a falcon. "All you have to do is switch this coin with the other one and they won't know."

"How am I going to do that?" Rito whined sounding more like the brother that annoyed her. "They'll spot me."

"Do I have to think of everything?" Rita asked. She held up her wand and hit Rito with a blast. He changed forms. She then fired at one of the Tengas who were standing in the throne room and it changed forms. "This is easy for even you Rito," she said with a smirk. "Now go down to the Youth Center and get me that coin!"

"Fine," Rito said and turned away. He and the Tenga teleported down to earth.

* * *

><p>"It's easy Rito," Rito grumbled to himself as he walked towards the Youth Center. Easy for her to say. I don't see her going down to Earth and switching coins.<p>

He looked over at the Tenga trying to get used to it looking human. He had talked it over with the Tenga and they had a plan. The Tenga was going to do the switching while he kept the Rangers from seeing the switch. He walked into the Youth Center and found his target using the leg press with two other Rangers standing around him.

He nodded at the Tenga who walked towards the table where a backpack sat. There was no one looking he just had to keep the teens distracted.

"Hey are you almost done with that?" Rito asked approaching them.

"Yeah," Tommy said before standing up. "It's all yours," he said and started to walk away.

"Wait!" He called, "I heard that you teach karate classes here. How do I sign up?"

"Well," Tommy said with a smile, "the classes are actually for children. There are several good karate schools in Angel Grove."

"Tell me about them," Rito was getting desperate. He knew that the Tenga hadn't had a chance to switch the coins yet. He couldn't mess up. Rita and Zedd would kill him if he screwed up again.

"Uh okay," Tommy said as he took a towel that Adam had offered him. "The Flying Dragon's really good. I know the owner and he's helped me prepare for tournaments."

"Do you know his phone number?" Rito asked.

"Not off the top of my head but I'm sure he's…" he trained off as he put a hand to his forehead.

"Tommy are you okay?" Billy asked.

"Yeah sorry just got dizzy for a second," he answered. He turned back to Rito. "Anyway the school should be in the phone book."

"Thanks," Rito said before sitting down at the leg press. He knew the Tenga had made the exchange. He just had to wait until the teens left before going back to the moon.

"I'm Tommy by the way," Tommy said.

"Rick." Rito answered.

"It was nice meeting you Rick. Maybe I'll see you at the school sometime." Tommy said before walking away.

Rito used the leg press for a few minutes before he slipped out of the Youth Center. As soon as it was clear, he teleported back to the moon.

When he arrived, he found Rita and Zedd standing there waiting. "It's about time you did something right," Zedd said as he held up the White Ranger Coin.

"It was no problem Zedd. They never suspected a thing. Told ya I could handle it."

Rita grinned at him and then turned back to her husband who was now sitting on his throne.

Rito turned around and walked out of the throne room not wanting them to see the fear in his eyes. What had he done? That thought went away quickly and was replaced with pride in making his sister happy with him for once. If they destroyed the White Ranger, they would thank him for keeping the Rangers distracted.

* * *

><p>"Are you okay Tommy?" Billy asked as he, Adam, and Tommy sat down at a table.<p>

"I'm fine," Tommy said. "I just got dizzy for a moment. I probably overdid it on the leg press is all. I feel fine now."

A thought came to him. He grabbed his backpack and started searching it. He found his White Ranger coin inside. He now knew it was the leg press. He knew it hah to be the leg press because his knee usually hurt a bit afterwards. It didn't explain the dizziness but maybe that was just from the added weights he was pushing. He was sure that he was worrying about nothing.


	5. New Student

"Tommy are you okay?" Charlotte Oliver asked the next morning as Tommy came downstairs for breakfast.

"I'm fine," Tommy said as he sat down across from his father. A bowl of Cheerios was waiting for him.

Ryan Oliver put the newspaper that he was reading down and looked his son over. "You are a little pale."

Tommy shrugged. "I feel fine," he said, "maybe I need to spend more time in the sun," he said with a smile.

Charlotte frowned. "I don't know. Are you sure you're feeling well?" She asked as she put a hand on his forehead. "Well you don't have a fever."

"I'm fine," Tommy said and then ate his breakfast quickly in order to escape the questioning. He grabbed his backpack and car keys and was out the door.

* * *

><p>"It's working!" Rita crowed gleefully. She had been watching the exchange between Tommy and his parents. "You finally did something right Rito."<p>

"The Tenga did the coin exchange," Goldar reminded her. He was a little jealous at the praise. "Rito just distracted the Rangers."

"Hey," Rito protested, "if I hadn't distracted the Rangers they woulda seen the coin being taken."

"You did such a good job Rito," Rita said ignoring the bickering, "that I think Rick should enroll at Angel Grove High School. That way you can keep an eye on the Rangers. I think you should become Tommy's new best friend."

"Why would I want to be Tommy's best friend?"

"So you can see how he's reacting to the fake coin you idiot," Zedd said as he came into the room. He and Rita had discussed all of this the previous night so he didn't have to hear the beginning of the conversation.

"But I don't wanna go to high school," Rito whined. "I didn't like it when I went the first time."

"What are you talking about Rito?" Rita asked. "You've never been in high school."

"I know but I've seen the Rangers in school and I didn't like it."

"You're going to school and that's final," Rita said before blasting Rito with her wand.

When Rito opened his eyes he found himself in front of Angel Grove High School in the guise of Rick. He heaved a sigh before walking into the school.

* * *

><p>Tommy opened his locker and took his history book out for his first class. He shut his locker and turned around. He was surprised to see Rick was opening the locker next to his.<p>

"Hi Rick," Tommy greeted, "is this your first day?"

"Yeah," he said, "my sister made me come to school."

Tommy grinned. "My parents almost didn't let me go to school today."

"Are you sick?" Rick asked.

"No I feel fine. It's just my parents acting overly concerned." He decided to change the subject. "What's your first class?"

Rick looked down at his schedule. "History with Maguire."

"That's my first class too," Tommy said, "I'll show you where the class is. Let me see your schedule and I'll let you know where the rest of your classes are."

Rick handed him the schedule.

Tommy looked down at it and was surprised. "It looks like you're in all of my classes."

Rick grinned. "That's cool. At least I'll know one person."

"Billy and Adam are in some of the classes also so you'll know them too. You met them at the Youth Center."

"Cool," Rick said, "but I never caught their names."

"I'll introduce you," Tommy said as he stopped in front of the classroom. He opened the door and let Rick in first.

* * *

><p>Mrs. Maguire smiled at them as they entered her classroom. "You must be Rick Smith," she said. "Let me see your schedule." Rito handed it to her. She wrote down the information and then consulted her seating chart. "Why don't you take the last seat in the third row."<p>

"Okay," he said before sitting down. He saw that Tommy was sitting in the middle of the first row.

Bulk and Skull entered the classroom and sat in the seats to his left. Now he was starting to feel like he was fitting in.

Ten minutes into the class Rito was growing bored. He kept glancing at the clock on the wall wishing time would speed up.

* * *

><p>Tommy was starting to get a headache. He rubbed at his temples as he tried to concentrate. He had Tylenol in his locker so he raised his hand.<p>

"Yes Tommy," Mrs. Maguire asked turning to face him.

"May I go to the restroom?"

"Of course," she said.

Tommy got up and grabbed the hall pass. He walked to his locker and unlocked it. He moved his books aside until he found the bottle of Tylenol. He unscrewed the top and took two our. He had just closed his locker when he was hit by another dizzy spell. He leaned against his locker waiting for it to pass.

"Tommy," a voice called.

Tommy opened his eyes and saw Rocky standing in front of him.

"Mrs. Maguire asked me to check on you. Are you okay?"

"Just have a headache," he said as he moved away from the locker. He discovered that wasn't a good idea, as he got dizzy again.

"Do you want me to get Nurse Stone?"

"No I'll be okay in a minute," he said, "I just got a little dizzy."

Rocky pursed his lips trying to decide what to do. Tommy was really pale. He would give him two minutes and if he didn't improve, he would get the school nurse.

After a minute Tommy moved away from the locker and found that he was no longer dizzy. He walked to the drinking fountain so that he could take the Tylenol.

He and Rocky walked to their classroom. "Sorry for taking so long," Tommy apologized as they entered the classroom.

"It's okay Tommy," Mrs. Maguire said, "just take your seat." She waited until they were both sitting down before she continued the lecture.


	6. Trouble After School

Tommy couldn't shake the dizziness he felt but at least he was able to walk around without feeling like he was going to faint. What was wrong with him? He wondered. Was he not fully recovered from Rita and Zedd having his coin? He had been feeling weary ever since he got the coin back but the dizziness was different. He knew he should talk to Zordon about it but he was too afraid to find out what was going on. He just had to hope he would start feeling better.

"Tommy are you sure you're okay?" Rocky asked as they exited the classroom after class.

"I'm fine Rocky," Tommy said, "I just got dizzy for a moment. I'm feeling better now." Which was true because he was feeling better then he had earlier. Rick walked up to them. "Rocky this is Rick. He's new to Angel Grove. Rick this is Rocky."

"Hi Rick," Rocky said, "how are you liking Angel Grove?"

"It's okay," Rick said, "but I haven't really seen much."

"Where are you from?" Rocky asked.

"Las Vegas," Rick said.

"My Uncle Josh races there," Tommy said, "he says it's one of his favorite places to race."

"I've never been to the racetrack," Rick said, "but I heard it's good."

The warning bell rang. "Come on I'll show you to math," Tommy said. "See you later Rocky."

"Nice meeting you Rick," Rocky said before heading to Spanish.

* * *

><p>Rito could have kicked himself. He had no idea why he had said Las Vegas. Now he knew that Tommy's uncle raced in Las Vegas what if he had questions about Las Vegas? He couldn't change it now. Maybe when he went back to the moon he could use Rita's Ritascope to watch Las Vegas just in case someone had questions.<p>

He followed Tommy into class and noted that Tommy did not look well. That should make Rita and Ed happy he thought as he handed his schedule to the teacher. Maybe they would let him stop going to high school.

He took the seat in the back of the classroom again. This time Bulk and Skull were not in the class. He nearly fell asleep in math, as he could not understand a thing that the teacher was saying. He just had to hope the teacher wouldn't notice if he fell asleep. He closed his eyes.

"Mr. Smith," a voice called.

Rito opened his eyes and found that the whole class was staring at him. "What?" He asked.

"I will not tolerate sleeping in my class. I realize it's your first day so I will only give you a warning. If you fall asleep in my class again, you will get detention," Mr. Stanley said.

"Gotcha," Rito said. He sighed and tried to pay attention. He was sure that didn't impress Tommy.

After class he left the classroom and waited for Tommy who stopped to ask the teacher a question about a homework assignment. While he was waiting he looked at his schedule and saw he had Spanish II next. Great. He didn't know Spanish. This wasn't going to work.

Tommy came out of the classroom with a frown on his face. "I can't believe I forgot my homework assignment." Tommy said to Rito.

"I forget things all the time," Rito said trying to sound helpful.

"Me too," Tommy said a smile starting to form on his face. "Too many times actually. We've got Spanish," he said and then led him down the hall.

* * *

><p>On the Moon, Rita watched the exchange. She had had been keeping an eye on Rito ever since she had sent him down to Earth. This was working much better then she had ever planned. Tommy's dizzy spell was proof that his body was reacting to a power loss that he was unaware of. She knew they had to move quickly before Zordon realized what had happened.<p>

"Goldar!" She yelled.

A few moments later her winged minion appeared in the throne room.

"Yes Empress," he asked.

"As soon as school ends, I want you to go down to Angel Grove High School with a squadron of Tengas. When the Rangers leave the school, I want the Tengas to attack but I want you to hang back. I will let you know when to attack."

"Yes Empress," he said with a scowl on his face.

Rita watched him go without saying anything. She was used to Goldar's disobedience. He usually only followed her husband's commands. She remembered her brother's arguing with her and sighed. Rito and Goldar both needed to learn that she was in charge.

* * *

><p>After school that day, Tommy walked out of Angel Grove High School with Rick and Kat. They were all headed to the Youth Center for smoothies before Tommy had to go to Physical Therapy. It would be his last physical therapy, which he was very glad. It meant that he would be back on active duty.<p>

"So how do you like Angel Grove High School?" Kat asked Rick. "I just moved here a month ago myself so I know what it's like to be the new person at school."

"It's okay I guess," Rick said. "Not different from my last high school."

There was a flash of light and suddenly Tengas surrounded them.

"I bet your last school didn't have these," Tommy said as he went into a fighting stance. "Go hide," Tommy said to Rick, "we'll hold them off until the Rangers get here."

"Sure," Rick said quickly. "What are these things?"

"I think they are called Tengas," Kat said.

"Okay," Rick said as one of the Tengas took a stop towards them, "see ya!" He said and then ran away.

Kat turned to Tommy, "we need to get them away from the school."

"I know," Tommy said as he deflected a hit from one of the Tengas. "Let's run over there," he said indicating a quieter spot. "Hopefully they'll follow."

"Sounds good," Kat said and then they both ran to the spot that Tommy had pointed to.

When they were sure no one was looking, they both called, "Ninja Ranger Power Now!"

They were garbed in their Ninjetti suits.

They started fighting the Tengas and were not having much trouble with beating them. Tommy's knee started to throb but he tried to ignore it. This was not a good sign. There was a flash of light and Goldar appeared.

"So you are back fighting White Ranger," Goldar greeted, "I see your knee is better. I'll have to fix that."

"It's morph…" Tommy was stopped by a kick to his knee from a Tenga that was standing behind him.

He grabbed his knee and tried to remain balanced. That was not what his still recovering knee needed.

There was a flash of light as the other Rangers joined them.

"Zordon," Billy said into his communicator after seeing the state of his leader, "teleport Tommy to the Command Center."

"No wait," Tommy said as he let go of his knee. He was gone before he could protest further.

* * *

><p>"Curses!" Zedd said upon seeing the White Ranger's teleportation. "Zordon teleported him out before he could attempt to morph."<p>

"Yeah the Blue Ranger interfered," Rito said from where he was standing looking through the old Ritascope. "What are you going to do now Ed?"

"That's Zedd you idiot!" Zedd thundered, "I have a plan. He will morph and when he does, that is when the real fun begins."

* * *

><p>Notes: I'm having too much fun with this fic.<p> 


	7. Monsters Oh My

Notes: Thanks to Jules for her help.

Tommy landed in the Command Center and Alpha immediately started scanning his knee. "Zordon I'm fine," Tommy said, "I need to help the others."

Zordon didn't say anything as he waited for Alpha to finish the scans and enter the results into the computers.

Tommy turned to face the Viewing Globe. The Rangers were struggling with Goldar, the Tengas, and now Rito. He really hated being on the sidelines.

"TOMMY," Zordon said.

Tommy turned around to face his mentor.

"I DO NOT SEE THAT MUCH DAMAGE TO YOUR KNEE. YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO EXPLAIN IT TO YOUR PHYSICAL THERAPYST," He said, "I AM CONCERNED ABOUT YOUR LOW ENERGY."

"Low energy?" Tommy asked in confusion.

"YES THE SCANS INDICATE THAT YOUR ENERGY IS LOWER THEN NORMAL. IT IS NOT AS LOW AS IT WAS WHEN RITA AND ZEDD HAD YOUR COIN, BUT I AM CONCERNED."

"That could explain the dizziness," Tommy said.

"IT MAY," Zordon said. "YOU MAY STILL BE REACATING TO THE POWER DRAIN OR FROM YOUR PHYSICAL THERAPY," he said, "I WILL OBSERVE YOU AND IF IT LOOKS LIKE THE POWERS ARE TOO LOW, I WILL RE-ENERGIZE YOU."

Tommy looked at his watch, "I'm going to be late to physical therapy and my parents were mad the last time I was late."

"I UNDERSTAND TOMMY. PLEASE LET ME KNOW WHAT YOUR PHYSICAL THERAPIST SAYS."

"I will," Tommy said and then teleported to the parking lot where he had parked his truck. He drove to the physical therapy building and went inside. He would have rather been helping the Rangers but he couldn't skip physical therapy and he knew Zordon wouldn't have sent him down to the fight. One more day of physical therapy and he would be back on the team.

* * *

><p>"No, seriously? Those monsters were real?" Rick asked the next day at school. "I thought it was just some weird TV show."<p>

"It's not reported in Las Vegas?" Aisha asked. She, Rick, Tommy, and Adam were standing in front of a drinking fountain before first period.

"Nah," Rick said, "not that I watched much news."

"There's a monster attack at least once a week," Tommy said, "but the Power Rangers are always there to stop them."

"Oh the guys in the colorful suits?" Rick asked. "That's why I thought it was some TV show."

"Yep those are the Power Rangers," Bulk said as he pushed Adam aside to get a drink from the water fountain.

"Do they go to this school or are they like old."

"No one knows," Tommy said, "they only show up when there are monsters attacking."

"Skull and I tried to find out who they were but we moved on," Bulk said standing up. "We now do important things like keeping Angel Grove safe from crime." He walked away.

Rick stared at him for a moment before saying, "Bulk fights crime and there are Power Rangers? What kind of city is this?"

"Not Las Vegas that's for sure," Tommy said.

The bell rang.

"See you guys at lunch," Tommy said before he and Rick walked away.

Aisha and Adam headed to their first period class.

"Tommy looks okay to me," Adam said as he and Aisha walked down the hall.

"Yeah," Aisha said, "maybe Rocky was worried about nothing."


	8. Home Sick

Notes: Special thanks to Jules for her help with this chapter.

Rocky walked in to first period the next day and slid into his seat just before the late bell rang. He couldn't believe how close he had come to being late. He had been talking to Aisha and they had both lost track of the time.

He dropped has backpack on the floor and turned to tell Tommy something and found that Tommy wasn't there. He guessed he wasn't the only person running late that day.

Mrs. Maguire closed the door and started the lesson for the day.

Rocky was surprised when Tommy didn't show up all. He gathered his books and went to his locker. He took out his Spanish book and his math book before shutting the locker. He was just about to head to class when he saw Kat and Aisha walking by. "Have you guys seen Tommy?" She asked.

"No," Kat answered, "wasn't he in first period?"

Rocky shook his head.

"That's weird," Aisha said, "maybe he's just running late. It wouldn't be the first time he missed first period."

The others nodded though Rocky wasn't feeling any better about it.

* * *

><p>Tommy reached for his glass of orange juice and took a long sip. He felt awful. When he had had woken up that morning, his mother took one look at it him and ordered him back to bed. When she had taken his temperature, it was 102.9. He had a doctor's appointment that afternoon.<p>

He didn't understand it. He had felt fine the day before. He had even sparred with Adam a little bit. It had felt like old times. He lay back in bed and stared at the ceiling. His mother was downstairs making him toast for breakfast and he was under orders not to leave bed. He didn't think he could. Sitting up to drink his orange juice had made him dizzy.

The door opened and his mother came in with a tray with toast and a washcloth. She set the tray down on his nightstand.

"How are you feeling?" She asked.

"Horrible," he admitted. He didn't see any reason to lie to his mother. His mother already knew he was sick.

"I have to go to the bank for a couple of hours," Charlotte said as she fluffed his pillow. "I'll be back in time to take you to your doctor's appointment. Just call me or your father if you need anything." She stood up. "Do you need anything now?" She asked.

"No," Tommy said and then let out a cough. "I'm okay."

She gave him a concerned look but left the room knowing she had to go to work. Tommy was sixteen years old. He would be okay.

Tommy ate a slice of toast before setting the tray back on the nightstand. He picked up the washcloth and put it on his forehead. The damp cloth made him feel better.

* * *

><p>Rito was not happy as he walked to his next class. Why was he at school if Tommy wasn't? He was supposed to be spying on him and he couldn't if he wasn't at school.<p>

At lunch he decided to see if one of the Rangers knew where Tommy was. He walked up to Billy and said, "where's Tommy?"

"I don't know," Billy answered, "he does not appear to be at school today."

"Yeah I figured that out," Rito said, "I was just wondering if you had heard from him is all," Rito said before turning away. Well that was not useful, he thought as he walked up to his locker and threw his morning books into the locker. He took out his lunch and headed to the cafeteria. He had 'borrowed' the food from a house not far away from school. He figured they would miss it less then they would if he had taken money. He wasn't sure why he was so concerned about that. He hated Earthlings.

He went to the cafeteria and found a seat near the back of the cafeteria. He did not feel like talking to anyone. Thankfully for him no one tried to talk to him and he was able to eat his lunch in peace. He'd be happy when his spying on the White Ranger was over. He hated high school.

* * *

><p>When Tommy and his mother arrived at the doctor's office, they had to wait about fifteen minutes before they were allowed in the examination room. The nurse took his temperature and then left the room. Then they had to wait another ten minutes before the doctor saw them.<p>

Dr. Morgan Hanson came into the room. "Hello Tommy, Charlotte," she greeted as she consulted Tommy's folder. "So what brings you here today?"

"I'm sick." Tommy said. "I've been coughing and am dizzy."

"Hm," she said as she started examining him. She listened to his breathing, checked his throat and ears. "Well Tommy it appears you may have a case of the flu," she said. "I'm going to draw some blood just to be sure and while we await the test results I'm going to prescribe some medication. I'd like you to stay in bed at least the rest of the week. I also want to see you on Friday but I will call you if we find something different from the blood work. I want you to stay in bed all weekend. If you are feeling better Monday, you may go back to school. Drink lots of fluids. " She said. She wrote down the prescription and handed Charlotte a piece of paper to give to the receptionist. "Do you have any more questions?" She asked.

They shook their heads. She left the room.

"I have to stay home the rest of the week?" Tommy asked. It was Wednesday but he wasn't happy about missing two days of school. He actually liked school.

Charlotte gave him a sympathetic smile. "It won't be so bad," Charlotte said, "I'll have Billy bring you home your homework. You'll be better before you know it."

They walked to the receptionist and Charlotte gave her the piece of paper and paid for the office visit. They walked out to the car and got in.

"I'm going to drop you off at home and then I'm going to go to the store. Is there any particular juice you want?"

"More orange juice," he said as they drove up to the house. Tommy got out and Charlotte watched him walk into the house before driving away. Tommy went up to his room and lay down. Now he knew why he had been feeling the way he did. He had the flu. It all made sense to him now.

* * *

><p>Notes: Of course it's not that simple…<p> 


	9. No Rest For the Wicked

Tommy opened his eyes when he heard the phone ringing. He looked at his alarm clock and saw that he had been asleep the past couple of hours. The phone stopped ringing and he closed his eyes.

A few moments later he heard someone call, "Tommy it's for you! It's Kim!"

Tommy reached for the phone on his nightstand. "Hello?"

"Tommy," Kim greeted, "are you okay? You sound awful."

"I feel awful," he said as he sat up on his bed. "I've got the flu."

"I'm sorry," Kim said, "I hope you feel better soon."

"Me too," Tommy answered. "How's gymnastics?"

"It's going great," she said excitedly. "I love it here but I miss you guys a lot."

"We miss you too," he covered the phone as he coughed. "Sorry. Do you like your roommate?"

"Allison's great. She's from New York City but she's been training here for a year. Everyone's great. I wish you could meet them."

"Me too," he lay back down on his bed after another dizzy spell. He'd be glad when he was over the flu.

"How's Angel Grove?"

"It's the same though there's this new guy named Rick Smith who's from Las Vegas. He's a nice guy."

"Sounds like it," Kim said.

Tommy heard someone yell for Kim. "Do you have to go?" He asked.

"Unfortunately," she answered. "A bunch of us are going to grab a late dinner. I'll call you later in the week. I love you."

"I love you too Kim," he said and then they hung up.

He closed his eyes again surprised at how tiring the conversation was.

* * *

><p>"This is perfect," Rita said from the throne room. "Tommy's got the flu."<p>

"Why is that perfect?" Goldar asked.

"Because you baboon," she said, "Tommy's sick and the draining of his powers will affect him more because of it. Zordon will not even begin to suspect that Tommy doesn't have his coin and he'll believe the flu has something to do with the lower power level that I'm sure that he has detected. This is working out better then I thought it would."

"Since Tommy's sick does that mean I can stop going to school?" Rito asked.

"No," Rita said turning to glare at her brother. "Someone will need to bring him his homework and you're the perfect person for the job."

"But I hate school," Rito whined. "I'm pretty sure I'm failing every subject. Why do I need to take Advanced Chemistry? It's not like I'm going to be a rocket surgeon."

Rita laughed. She couldn't believe her younger brother's stupidity. Sometimes she couldn't believe she was related to him. She definitely got her father's brains while he got his stupidity from whoever his mother was. She never met the woman but she suspected she must be an idiot.

"It doesn't matter if you fail Rito," she continued, "it's not as if you will be attending school the rest of the year."

"How much longer do I have to go?" Rito asked.

"When we are rid of the White Ranger, you will stop going to school."

Rito wasn't sure if that made him feel better.

* * *

><p>"I spoke to Mrs. Oliver after school," Aisha said as she joined Kat and Adam at their usual table outside.<p>

"Did she say why he missed school?" Kat asked.

"She said he has the flu. He might be back in school on Monday."

"That would explain why he didn't look like he felt good the other day," Adam said.

"Yeah," Aisha said, "she was hoping one of us could bring him his homework Thursday and Friday."

"I could do it," a voice said from behind them. They all turned to see Rick standing there. "Sorry I didn't mean to eavesdrop but I'm in all of his classes and I'd be happy to bring him his homework."

"That's great," Kat said, "do you need his address?"

"Nah Tommy gave it to me the other day," Rick said. ."Does she need me to bring him today's homework?"

"She said that Mr. Oliver was going to pick it up on his way home from work," Aisha answered. "He's going to be busy with a case the rest of the week and couldn't stop by the school."

"Maybe he can help me with chemistry," Rito said as he sat down in a chair across from Adam. "I am totally lost."

"Billy probably could help you more," Adam said, "he took the class last year."

"Yeah but I figured since Tommy's in the class he might be able to help me understand it better. But if he doesn't feel up to it I'll ask Billy."

Beep beep beep beep beep

"What's what?" Rick asked looking around.

"Oh that was watch," Kat said, "I have an alarm set on it. We are meeting some friends at the lake. We'll see you later."

"Bye Rick," Adam and Aisha said as they followed Kat away.

* * *

><p>"See ya," Rito said and then sat back in the chair. He figured Rita had it handled and he could enjoy being 'human'.<p>

"_Rito!"_ Rita yelled telepathically.

Rito groaned. So much for relaxing he thought as he walked to a clear spot before teleporting up to the moon.


	10. Fever Dream?

"_Rajon!" A voice called. A teenager turned around to face a woman. _

"_Mom!" He called running back to her. _

"_Take this," she said pressing a coin in his hand. "No matter what happens never forget who you are."_

"_But mom," he said trying to hand the coin back to her. _

"_No you must hold onto this coin," she said and took a step back. "I love you Rajon. Never forget that." She said before there was a blast and Rajon was knocked off of his feet. Rajon opened his hand to reveal the coin. It had a single claw print._

Tommy sat up in bed. It had been the Green Ranger coin. Why was he having a dream about someone else receiving the Green Ranger coin? He wondered. Somehow it just didn't feel like a dream.

Tommy stood up on shaky legs and walked to his bedroom door. He stuck his head out the door and made sure his parents were still at work before teleporting to the Command Center. He was sure he had some time before his parents arrived home.

When Tommy landed he heard the alarms going off.

"TOMMY," Zordon said in surprise upon seeing his arrival. "I WAS INFORMED THAT YOU WERE AT HOME WITH THE FLU."

"I was," Tommy said, "what's going on?" He asked.

"ZEDD AND RITA HAVE SENT GOLDAR AND TENGAS DOWN TO THE PARK. I DID NOT CALL YOU AS I KNEW THAT YOU WERE ILL."

Tommy watched the viewing globe for a few minutes. The Rangers were having no trouble with the Tengas and Goldar.

"Zordon," he said turning to face his mentor, "I had a dream. In it there was a teenager named Rajon and his mother. The woman handed him a coin and told him to hold onto it. When he opened his hand I saw the Green Ranger power coin."

Zordon was silent for a moment. "RAJON WAS A POWER RANGER FOR A VERY BRIEF TIME ON HIS HOME PLANET. MASTER VILE KILLED HIM IN BATTLE AND TOOK THE COIN. HE GAVE IT TO HIS DAUGHTER RITA, WHICH IN TURN WAS GIVEN TO YOU."

Tommy stared at his mentor not sure what to think. "Why did I have dream about him," he asked out loud.

"I DO NOT KNOW TOMMY," Zordon answered, "MAYBE IT WAS DUE TO YOUR HIGH FEVER. I SUGGEST THAT YOU GO HOME AND REST. I WILL CONTACT YOU IF THE RANGERS NEED YOUR ASSISTANCE."

Tommy nodded and teleported home. He hadn't wanted to tell Zordon how bad he felt. He went and lay down in his bed and closed his eyes.

He was shaken awake. He opened his eyes and saw his parents staring down at him.

"Open your mouth," Ryan said holding a thermometer. Tommy obeyed and the thermometer was placed under his tongue. He closed his eyes.

A few moments later he heard his mother said, "103.2. Maybe we should contact his doctor."

A cold compress was placed on Tommy's forehead. "Let's see if the temperature goes down by morning. If it gets worse, we'll take him to the doctor."

Tommy heard them walk out of the room but he was already asleep again before they were down the stairs.

* * *

><p>Charlotte Oliver stood at the sink washing the dinner dishes with Corey drying. She was usually worried about Corey dropping something but tonight she was more worried about herself dropping something. Her mind was on Tommy. He had eaten a little bit of the soup she had made him before drifting back to sleep. She was concerned about the temperature but the doctor said the same thing that Ryan did. If the temperature didn't start going down tomorrow, she said to bring Tommy in. It was hard for her to wait until morning.<p>

"Mommy?" Corey asked as he set the dish on the counter for Charlotte to put away.

"Yes Corey?" She asked.

"Is Tommy going to be okay?"

"Yes. He's sick but he will be okay." She didn't know if she believed that completely but she didn't want to worry her youngest son.

The phone rang.

Charlotte picked it up and said, "hello?"

"Hello Charlotte," a voice greeted, "it's Marcia."

"Hello Marcia," Charlotte said as she set the sponge down. Marcia Campbell was Aisha's mother and was a doctor.

"Aisha was telling me that Tommy has the flu. How's he doing?" She asked.

"He's been sleeping most of the day," she said as she started to walk out of the room. "His temperature has gone up but his doctor asked us to wait until tomorrow to see if his temperature goes down."

"That sounds like good advice," Marcia said. "I know it's difficult when your kids are sick. The flu has been going around. I've seen at least ten cases just this week. Is he on antibiotics?"

"Yes," she answered.

"Good. I'm sure he'll be feeling better in no time. So how are you doing?"

"Other then being worried about Tommy, I'm doing okay. Ryan and Corey are doing well too. How's your family doing?"

"Everyone's great. Aisha still volunteering at the veterinary office and Mark's enjoying the off season." Mark Campbell was a football coach at Angel Grove Middle School."

There was a crash from the kitchen.

"I have to go Marcia," Charlotte said.

"I understand. Call me if you need anything," Marcia said before hanging up.

Charlotte hung up the phone and went into the kitchen to find Corey staring at her with tears in his eyes.

She looked down and saw two frying pans were on the floor.

"It's okay Corey," she said as she picked up the frying pans. "Nothing's broken. Help me finish the dishes and then I'll get you some ice cream for desert."

Corey grinned and they went back to cleaning the dishes.


	11. Late Night Visitor

Later that night, Tommy rolled over in bed unable to sleep. He was still thinking about the dream he had earlier. Why did he have a dream about Rajon?

He got out of bed to get a glass of water. He walked carefully down the stairs not wanting to wake his family. He had to stop a couple of times when he became dizzy. He'd be happy when he was over the flu.

He turned on the kitchen light as he entered the room. He walked over to the cupboard and took out a glass. He turned the water on and looked out the window.

Crash went the cup as it fell out of his hands.

"Rito?" He whispered. He started to search for his morpher and realized it was upstairs in his dresser.

"Tommy?" A voice asked from behind him. He turned around to see his mother standing there in a bathrobe. "Are you okay?" She asked.

"Yeah sorry. I guess I lost the grip on my glass," he said.

"You should be in bed," she said as she came up to him and placed a hand on his forehead. "You are still really warm."

"I was just going to get a glass of water," he quickly explained. "I'll go back to bed in a moment."

"Here let me get it," she said as she took another glass from the cupboard. She filled it and led Tommy to the table. She sat down next to him and watched as he drank down the glass of water.

Tommy quickly looked out the window and saw that Rito was gone. Had he imagined that? He wondered.

"It's almost two AM," Charlotte said taking Tommy's glass.

There was a loud bang.

Tommy shakily got to his feet, "mom go upstairs,"

"Ryan!" Charlotte called up the stairs ignoring her son's request.

Tommy went to the door and looked through the peephole half expecting to see a monster at his door but instead he saw Rick.

"It's just a friend from school," Tommy said as he opened the door. "Rick what are you doing here?" He asked.

"I…" he said sounding unsure, "I had a fight with my parents and was wondering if I could crash here tonight."

"What's going on," Ryan said as he appeared at the top of the stairs.

"Come in," Charlotte said gesturing towards Rick who was shivering from the cold evening.

"Mom, dad, this is Rick Smith. He's new to Angel Grove." Tommy introduced. "Rick these are my parents."

"Nice to meet you Rick but what are you doing here at 2 AM," Rick asked.

"I had a fight with my parents and they kicked me out of the house," he said as his teeth chattered. "I'm sure it'll blow over but…"

"Sure I'll just make up the couch," Charlotte said and hurried away.

Tommy was starting to feel dizzy again so he sat down on the couch.

Ryan came over to Tommy and placed a hand on his forehead. "Go back to bed," he ordered. "We'll take care of Rick."

"Okay," Tommy said getting up from the couch.

"Whoa!" Ryan said as he caught Tommy, "you are definitely seeing a doctor later," he said before helping Tommy up the stairs and to his room. He made sure Tommy was in bed and resting comfortably before going downstairs.

"Now Rick," Ryan said as he came into the room, "You may stay the night and if you'd like I can talk it over with your parents to see what's going on. I'm sure it was a misunderstanding."

"Oh you don't need to talk to my parents. "I'll call them tomorrow at school or something," he said, "but I appreciate this." He said. "I can fix the couch," he said to Charlotte. "I'm sorry for just dropping by but I don't have any other friends in Angel Grove."

"It's okay Rick we understand," Charlotte said though she was not used to people dropping by at two AM in the morning. None of Tommy's friends had ever been kicked out of their house. Well not that she knew it. "We'll see you later in the morning." Charlotte said before going up the stairs.

"Just to let you know I am a cop," Ryan said before following her.

* * *

><p>Rito watched the Olivers go back upstairs before straightening the sheets on the couch. He wasn't sure why Rita and Zedd had made him drop by the Oliver house. It wasn't like he could live with them. He lies on the couch and fell asleep.<p>

"Hi!" A voice greeted him later that day.

Rito opened his eyes and saw a small child staring down at him. "Hi," he greeted.

"I'm Corey. Why are you on my couch?"

"Your parents said I could sleep here," Rito said as he stretched. He could smell bacon frying on the stove and almost salivated. He was really beginning to enjoy Earth food.

"Corey leave Rick alone and come eat some breakfast," Charlotte called from the kitchen.

Rito folded up the sheets neatly before going into the kitchen.

"Did you sleep okay?" Charlotte asked.

"Yeah thanks again for letting me crash here," he said as he sat down at the table.

"No problem," she said before she set a plate in front of him and Corey. "Ryan!" Charlotte yelled, "your food's getting cold."

"Charlotte can you come up here?" was the response.

"I'll be right back," she said before going up the stairs.

Rito just shrugged as he dug in. Yeah he could get used to Earth food.

* * *

><p>Charlotte found Ryan in Tommy's room. "Is everything okay?" She asked.<p>

Tommy was staring at the digital thermometer his eyes large with worry before it beeped.

"103.8," Ryan said, "just as I thought."

"I'll call the doctor," Charlotte said as she hurried out of the room.

Tommy just lay back in bed. He hated being sick and he wasn't getting better he was getting worse.


	12. Checked In

Notes: Thanks again to Jules for her expertise.

Rito was just starting his second helping of breakfast when he heard someone coming down the stairs. He looked up and watched as Ryan, Charlotte, and Tommy came into the room. He could easily tell that Tommy was not well. He looked worse then he did last night.

"Hey Tommy," he greeted, "you okay?"

"I'm taking him to the hospital," Ryan said.

Hospital? Rito thought. Rita and Zedd will be glad to hear that, he thought. He had to hold back a smirk. Now maybe they would get off of his case. He finally did something right.

"Is there anything I can do," Rito asked.

"No I think we've got it," Ryan said as he helped Tommy out the door. Charlotte grabbed her car keys.

Rito looked longingly at his food once more before standing up. "I should probably go to school then. Thanks for letting me sleep on your couch. I'll drop by the hospital to see you," Rito said and left.

As soon as he was out of eyesight, he teleported up to the moon in order to share the news.

He landed in the throne room. "Rita! Ed!" He yelled.

"What is it Rito?" Zedd yelled from somewhere in the palace.

"Tommy's in the hospital!"

Suddenly there was a flash of light as both Zedd and Rita arrived in the Throne Room.

"Tommy's in the hospital?" Rita asked.

"Yeah sis," Rito said with a smile, "He had a really high fever so his parents took him to the hospital."

"Good Rito it looks like you've finally done something right even if the fever wasn't caused by us," Zedd said twirling his staff in thought. "We will take advantage of the fact that the Rangers are missing a leader. Be ready Rito. We strike when the school day ends."

"Why don't we strike now?" Rito asked.

"Because you have to go to school," Zedd said and shut a blast at him. The next thing Rito knew, he was standing in front of Angel Grove High School as Rick.

"I hate school!" He muttered to himself before going into the school.

* * *

><p>"I don't want to go to the hospital," Tommy said, as he was he lay in the back of his father's car.<p>

"I know you don't Tommy but your doctor is very concerned about your fever," Ryan said as he got into the driver's side of the car. He looked at the mars light sitting on the floor but quickly dismissed the idea. He didn't need to get to the hospital that quickly. He pulled out of the driveway and drove to Angel Grove Hospital. He looked in the rearview mirror and saw that Tommy was asleep. He was glad to know that his son couldn't see how worried he was.

He pulled into the Emergency Room entrance of the hospital and got out. He went to the back of the car and opened the door. He started to pick Tommy up but stopped as Tommy opened his eyes.

"I can walk," Tommy told him as he sat up with a little assistance from Ryan. Ryan helped him out of the car and then helped him walk into the hospital. He had him sit down in a chair and then went to the nurse.

"My name is Ryan Oliver. Dr. Hanson said that she would notify you that I'd be bringing my son Tommy in."

"Just a moment," the nurse said as she started typing something into her computer. "I do see something in here about Tommy. Why don't you have a seat and we will call you when we are ready to see him."

Ryan sat down in the chair next to Tommy. He placed a hand on his forehead and thought he felt the same but he hoped the hospital would hurry. Ten minutes later Tommy was brought into an examination room.

The doctor did an examination and took his temperature.

"103.8," the doctor said as he wrote the temperature down on the chart. "I'm glad you brought Tommy in Mr. Oliver." He then turned his attention back to Tommy. "Don't worry Tommy," he said, "we'll have you feeling better in no time. A nurse will come in to draw blood and start an IV. Once we have that started, we'll take you to your room," he said and then left the room.

"He barely examined me," Tommy complained.

"I'm sure he already has Dr. Hanson's information Tommy," Ryan said trying to reassure him.

"He could be wrong," Tommy said hopefully.

"Tommy your fever is almost 104. I don't think he's wrong. The hospital won't be so bad. We'll bring you your homework and I'm sure you'll have tons of visitors."

"I got here as soon as I could," Charlotte said entering the examination room. "What did the doctor say?"

"He's going to draw some blood and start an IV. Tommy was checked into the hospital."

"I'm so sorry Tommy," Charlotte said as she sat down in the only chair in the room. She reached over and squeezed his hand.

"Hello!" A cheerful voice said as the curtain was pulled back. "My name is Brandy. I'm here to take a sample of Tommy's blood and to start an IV." She quickly got to work and took a blood sample and then started the IV. Tommy was too sick to feel it.

"An orderly will be in soon to move you. Let us know if you need anything," she said before she exited.

Tommy stared at the IV for a moment. "Is it too late to go home?"

"'Fraid so."

Tommy just lay back and closed his eyes. He didn't wake up when he was wheeled out of the room.

* * *

><p>Later that day, Aisha hurried over to where Kat and Adam were standing.<p>

"You guys will never believe this," she said. "I called my mom at work to remind her that I was volunteering at the veterinary office today and she told me Tommy was checked into the hospital.

"What?" Adam asked.

"It seems his fever kept going up last night and he was suffering from dizzy spells. When he was checked into the hospital his fever was almost 104."

"Wow I didn't realize he was so sick," Kat said, "we should go see him after school." The others nodded in agreement.

The bell rang and they turned to head to their next class. Adam was run over by someone running through the hall.

"Sorry," the person yelled, "I'm late!"

Adam shook his head when he realized who it was. "I think Tommy's lateness is rubbing off on Rick."

The others chuckled but the laugh did not last too long. They were all concerned about their friend.


	13. Call In

Notes: Thanks again to Jules for her assistance.

_Rajon looked around nervously as he walked into the building. He still clutched the power coin in his right hand afraid to let go. It was the last thing his mother had given him and now she was dead. He was only fourteen and not ready to lose his mother. He supposed being the son of a Power Ranger should have prepared him for it._

"_Rajon?" A voice called._

_He turned around to see Miri coming towards him. She was the Silver Ranger and had been his mother's best friend. _

"_What's wrong?" She asked. "Where's Avia?"_

"_She died," Rajon, said tears starting to stream down his face. He opened his hand to show her the coin._

_She clasped his hand shut. "I'm so sorry." She said as tears filled her eyes also. "Your mom loved you very much. Hold onto the coin. I think we may have to contact Zordon. He has a new Ranger team on Earth right now. He might be able to send us some help. I don't think they are much older then you," she said with a weak smile. _

"_Miri we have trouble!" A voice called from another room._

"_Coming!" She called back. She turned her attention back to Rajon. "I think your mother wants you to be a Power Ranger."_

Tommy eyes opened. What a weird dream he thought. This time he was able to see what Rajon was thinking. He looked around and for a moment wondered where he was. He was definitely not in his bedroom.

He turned and saw that there was an IV in one of his arms. He suddenly remembered that he was in the hospital. He turned to his other side and saw that there was a balloon on one of the chairs. The balloon said Get Well Soon.

The curtain parted and a cheerful looking nurse came into the room. "Hello Tommy! My name is Hilary and I am your day nurse." She went over and started checking his vitals. She made some notes on his file. "Do you need anything?"

"Water," he said realizing how thirsty he was.

"Of course," she said and she left the room. She came back a couple of minutes later with a pitcher and a paper cup. "Here you go!" She said. "Now if you need anything just hit the call button next to your bed."

Tommy watched her walk out of the room. He started to reach for the TV remote when he stopped. Where was his communicator? He wondered. What if he needed it? He supposed he could ask his parents where it was when the came to visit. He just had to hope Zordon didn't have to contact him.

He flipped through the channels and stopped on KRPG. The shoe was just starting and it appeared to be about the Power Rangers. He settled back in bed ready to see what this show would say.

"The Power Rangers," a disembodied voice said. "Are they good for Angel Grove? Are they necessary? We will be asking local resident, an Angel Grove Police Officer, and maybe a Power Ranger in the hour. We will even take your calls."

The show went through it's opening and then the show started. On the screen was the last battle against Rito.

"In 1993, Angel Grove was attacked by its first monster. Five colorful super heroes appeared and defeated the monster. Since then they have been joined by a sixth Ranger. Little is known about these super heroes. Are they from Angel Grove? Are they from another planet? We may never know."

They showed more Ranger battles and even caught an image of the Pink Ranger falling out of the Crane Zord. He didn't remember that. When did that happen? Then he saw Ninjor disappear and he knew when it was. He closed his eyes for a moment feeling sick. This time he was sure it wasn't from his illness. It was when Rita and Zedd had captured Ninjor and stole the Crane Zord.

"A lot of these fights were shot from far away so we apologize for there not being audio." The host continued. "As you can see, the Power Rangers have not always been victorious but are they doing good? After our commercial break we speak to Lieutenant Ryan Oliver from the Angel Grove Police Department."

The show went to commercial.

"Hey!" A voice called from the doorway. Tommy turned around to see Aisha, Billy, Kat, Rocky, and Adam standing in the doorway. Kat and Tanya were each carrying flowers.

"Hi," Tommy said with a smile.

"How are you feeling?" Kat asked as she set the flowers down.

"Horrible," Tommy admitted. "I guess I slept most of the day if it's after school."

The Rangers exchanged looks.

"It's actually lunch period," Billy said. "We'll need to leave soon."

Tommy looked at the clock on the wall and saw that it was in fact 12:05. He had slept for a couple of hours evidently.

"The Power Rangers have been helpful," Ryan Oliver said from the TV. "The AGPD wouldn't have been able to handle the monsters on our own and we appreciate the help that the Power Rangers have given."

"Oh you're watching Alex O'Shea's show," Aisha said. "I used to watch the show after school."

"My dad never said he was going to be on it," Tommy said reaching for the glass of water. He started to sit up but he got dizzy.

"Here let me do it," Rocky said taking the cup and putting the straw in and holding it for Tommy to drink from it.

"Thanks," Tommy said blushing. He hated feeling weak.

The curtain parted again and Charlotte entered the room. "Hi kids," she said before walking past them to stand next to Tommy. "Sorry I had to go to work for a little bit," she said. She leaned over and placed a hand on his forehead and frowned. "Still warm."

"I want to be a Power Ranger when I grow up!" A little girl said from the TV. "I want to be the Pink Ranger."

"The White Ranger is cooler," the kid next to her said. "He's got a cool sword and his Zord flies." 

"So does the Pink Ranger's!"

Tommy tried not to laugh.

"Oh they are adorable," Kat said.

They sat there and watched the show for a few minutes. Most of the response was positive. There were a couple of people that said that there were no monster fights and this was all created by Hollywood. They seemed to liken it to the moon landing.

The Rangers burst out laughing. Charlotte just shook her head in amusement.

"We will take live calls. Our number is 555-232-0123."

Rocky started to reach for Tommy's phone.

"Rocky!" Adam said. "You aren't going to call are you?"

"Why not?" He asked with a shrug.

"What are you going to say?" Tommy asked.

Rocky grinned, "you'll see."

Rocky entered the phone number. "Hi my name is Rocky DeSantos and I have a question for Alex O'Shea. I'm from Angel Grove. Well it's not really a question I just want to say how cool I think the Blue Ranger is."

Everyone started laughing. Tommy lay back on his pillow tired. This whole thing had tired him out. He was going to be happy when he well.

When Rocky was finished Charlotte took the phone from him and hung it up. "I think Tommy should get some rest. Why don't you kids come back after school?"

Tommy's eyes were starting to droop. "No I'm okay…"

Charlotte patted her hand. "Just get some sleep Tommy," she said kissing his forehead.

"We'll see you later Tommy," Billy said as he and the others exited the room.

Tommy closed his eyes and fell asleep.


	14. More from the Hospital

Notes: Thanks again to Jules for double checking a couple of medical paragraphs.

* * *

><p>"I can't believe you called the show and said that," Aisha said as she and the others left the hospital.<p>

"While I appreciate the compliment," Billy said as he looked around to make sure no one could hear him, "but it seems unwise to give yourself away."

"That's why I said the Blue Ranger and not the Red Ranger. Besides," Rocky said his eyes twinkling, "I just sound like a fan."

They all chuckled before getting into cars to drive back to Angel Grove High School.

In Aisha's car, Kat ejected the CD and inserted the Sound Garden CD Superunknown. She sat there listening to Let Me Down before saying, "I've never seen Tommy look so…" she wasn't sure how to finish that. "I mean I saw him after I stole his coin but somehow he looks worse."

Aisha sighed as she hit the turn signal as she left the hospital parking lot. "I know what you mean," she said, "He was smiling and laughing but you could tell he was really sick. When I get home I'm going to call Kim and let her know."

When they arrived at school, they only had five minutes left of lunch. They hurried to their lockers.

When Kat arrived at her locker she found Rick waiting. "Hi Rick," she said as she spun the dial.

"Hi," he said, "did you hear about Tommy?"

"I just got back from seeing him at the hospital. How did you find out?"

"The Oliver's let me crash on their couch last night. I was there when they took Tommy to the hospital. How's he doing?"

"He's really sick," Kat said as she pulled her math book out of her locker, "but he was laughing and smiling when we visited him."

Rick smiled. "That's good. I'm going to see him after school. Tommy's the only friend I've made in Angel Grove."

Kat looked at him sympathetically. "I know what it's like to be new in school and have hardly any friends. I'm sure you'll make friends in no time."

The bell rang signaling the end of lunch. Kat and Rick went their separate ways.

* * *

><p>When Tommy opened his eyes again he found his dad sitting in a chair next to the bed reading a file. "Hi."<p>

Ryan closed the file. "Hi," he said, "how are you feeling?"

Tommy yawned. "Tired," he said as he tried to sit up. "What time is it?"

"A little after 2," Ryan said going over to help him sit up. He handed him the cup of water. Tommy drank it before lying back down.

"Do you know where my watch is?" Tommy asked.

"The nurse took it off when she inserted the IV. I put it in the closet," he said as he went over to the closet and took out an overnight bag. He dug around inside and took out the communicator. He handed it to Tommy who then placed it on his bedside table.

"Thanks," he looked at the TV for a moment and remembered what he had seen earlier. "You didn't tell us you were going to be on Mark O'Shea's show."

Ryan blushed a little. "I forgot about it. My Captain chose me to do the interview. The interview took a half hour and only 30 seconds appeared on the show. I guess I got my 30 seconds of fame."

Tommy chuckled. The curtains parted as Hilary came into the room.

"For someone so sick," she said as she checked his vitals, "you are certainly having a good time." She picked a cup off a tray and handed it to Tommy. "Here's some Tylenol."

Tommy took it.

"How is he doing nurse," Ryan asked.

"His fever is still higher then we'd like it but the good news is it's not going up. Of course the bad news is it's not going down. When the doctor comes in, he may adjust Tommy's antibiotics. That will be up to him. How are you feeling Tommy? Are you still dizzy?"

"A little," he said. He hadn't really tried to sit up yet. "Tired too."

"Sleep is really good medicine against the flu," Hilary said with a gentle smile.

The curtains parted again and a middle-aged man entered the room. "Good afternoon," he said, "my name is Dr. Curtis." He took the clipboard that Hilary offered him. He read it. "I agree with Nurse Hilary and I'm going to increase the antibiotics."

"How long do you think I'll have to stay in the hospital?" Tommy asked.

"It depends on how you respond to antibiotics," Curtis said, "it may be a couple of days it may be a week or more. It's hard to tell at this point."

Tommy's face fell. He needed to get better so he could lead the Rangers.

"Don't worry about that right now," Dr. Curtis, said, "just concentrate on getting better. Did either of you have any questions?" They shook their heads.

Dr. Curtis and Hilary left the room.

"I'll have Billy drop off your homework just as we had originally planned," Ryan said before looking at his watch. "I'm sorry but I have to get back to work. Call me if you need anything. He said before leaving the room.

Tommy lay back in bed and tried to go back to sleep.

* * *

><p>On the Moon, Rita watched the hospital room with interest. The Rangers would be without their leader for longer then she could have possibly hoped.<p>

"Let me go down and destroy the White Ranger," Goldar said.

Rita turned away from Ritascope with a scowl on her face. "I am not ready to destroy him yet Goldar. He hasn't even morphed yet. I want him to suffer first."

Goldar was not happy but he did not say anything. Hopefully Zedd would let him kill the White Ranger. He hoped they didn't leave it to Rito because he knew he would mess up again.


	15. Getting Better

Notes: Special thanks to Jules' input.

A week later Tommy was sitting up in his hospital bed doing homework. He was feeling better then he did when he was first admitted into the hospital. He wasn't 100% yet, but he was getting there. Much slower then he'd like though.

"Hey Tommy," a voice called from the doorway. Tommy looked up to see Rick there. "How are you feeling?"

"Much better. The doctor thinks I might be released tomorrow but I won't be back in school for at least another week."

"Glad to hear that you are getting out of here soon," Rick said sitting down in a chair next to the bed. "I need to ask you a favor. I know bad timing cause you're in the hospital but I'm flunking chemistry."

"Billy would be the perfect person to ask," Tommy said pushing the bedside table away.

"I know but I don't want to bother him. I really don't know him. He'd probably laugh at me."

"Billy wouldn't laugh at you," Tommy said with a grin. "He loves science. Where are you stuck?"

Rick looked through his backpack and pulled out the last test. "I missed every question."

"I can't look at the test but maybe we can go through the chapter when I get home. I really can't focus on equations at the moment. They make my head spin," he said with a small smile. "I really think you should ask Billy for help. He took the class last year. Or talk to Mr. Schafer and see if he knows of any good tutors." He sank back against his pillows again. "I'm just really tired from all of the homework."

"I know how that is! I get tired from homework and I'm not even sick." There was a beeping noise. "What's that?"

"I think I left the alarm on, on my watch," Tommy said wondering why Zordon was contacting him. He knew he was in the hospital.

Rick glanced at his own watch. "I have to go anyway. I'll see you later."

"Bye," Tommy said watching him go. He thought about his communicator but realized he couldn't tell if anyone was around. He'd just have to hope it wasn't important. He turned the TV on and scanned the local channels looking for an attack but didn't find one. That didn't mean there wasn't one. He closed his eyes wishing he were well enough to lead the Rangers.

* * *

><p>Rito teleported up to the moon from the hospital. Part of him was glad that Tommy was feeling better. Then he'd get mad at himself for being glad. Tommy was his enemy and humiliated him many times.<p>

"Rito," Rita yelled from the throne room.

"What?" He yelled back as he walked into the throne room.

"I wanted to know how the White Ranger is doing."

"He's getting out of the hospital tomorrow."

Rita smiled. "Good. We can continue the draining of his power sooner then I thought. I still can't believe you haven't messed this up Rito."

"I don't mess things up sis. I did bring you the Tenga eggs."

Rita shook her head. "So you've done two things right. Doesn't change the fact that you've messed up everything else. It's your fault Tommy even has the White Ranger coin. I don't know why we keep you around."

"Maybe because dad won't let you get rid of me," Rito muttered to himself. He stopped and wondered where that had come from.

"What did you say?" Rita screeched.

"Nothing!" Rito said quickly. He cried out in pain as he was hit from behind with a blast.

"Maybe hanging out with the Rangers so much is a bad idea Rita," Zedd said, "maybe I'll send a Tenga down as Rick instead to finish the job."

"I can do it," Rito said, "give me another chance."

"I will only give you another chance because the Rangers will likely see through the Tenga. But if you show any more insubordination Rito and you are gone and I don't care what Master Vile says about that."

"Gotcha Ed," Rito said as he walked out of the throne room. He had homework to do. He sighed maybe he should have let them replace him with a Tenga.

* * *

><p>Notes: Sorry for not updating my Power Ranger fics lately. I've been so involved with a wrestling fic that I'm excited about<p> 


	16. First Day Back

Tommy entered the school loaded down with finished homework assignments and papers. He had missed two weeks of school. He may have been caught up on homework but he didn't feel like he'd ever really be caught up. He still felt tired but his fever had gone away and the doctor seemed to think he was well enough for school.

"Tommy," a voice called from behind him. He turned to see Rick. "Welcome back."

"Thanks Rick," Tommy said as he adjusted his backpack strap. He headed for his locker where he found Billy and Aisha. "Hey guys."

"Glad to see you are well enough to be back in school," Billy said.

"Yeah," Aisha agreed, "school hasn't been the same without you."

"Thanks. It's good to be…" he stopped as he felt a pang in his shoulder. He adjusted his backpack hoping that would help.

"Are you okay," Rick asked from behind them.

"Yeah just have a lot of books in my bag," he said. He opened his locker and took his afternoon books out of his bag. He closed his locker and noticed the pain had gone away. They walked to their first period classes.

* * *

><p>Tommy stared at the board in science class trying to make sense of what was on the board. Science was one of his best subjects but he couldn't understand the equation on the board. He had thought he was all caught up. Had he missed something?<p>

"Psst," Billy said, "you are in the wrong class. This is physics."

Tommy blushed. "Oops," he said as he gathered his things and got up so Violet could sit in her desk. He quickly left the classroom. The room was 161 and his class was in 163. He had no idea how he made the mistake. He hurried into the correct classroom and handed his homework assignments to the teacher. He sat down next to Rick who was studying the science book and didn't look up. He wondered if Rick had ever considered switching to an easier class.

The rest of the day was uneventful and Tommy wasn't as behind as he had thought he was. He even got an A on a pop quiz in history class. After school, he joined his friends at the juice bar.

* * *

><p>"Tommy's back," Goldar said, "can I go after him now?"<p>

"Soon Goldar," Rita said smiling, "very soon he'll feel the pain he has caused us."

Goldar scowled. He had no idea why Rita and Zedd were waiting. The White Ranger was over the flu and they said he could attack once he was out of the hospital. His scowl deepened when Rito teleported into the throne room.

"Hey sis I'm home from school," Rito called. "Did you make me a snack?"

Rita scowled at her younger brother. "No!" She yelled. "Go do your homework," she said wanting to get Rito away from her. He was acting so strange, even for Rito. Maybe it had been a mistake to have him keep up the ruse of being a human teenager.

"Fine," Rito yelled and stormed off towards his quarters. He had a lot of homework and wished for the day when he could stop pretending to be a teenager. He also dreaded that day because he knew what would cause that. Tommy was his enemy. Why was he not happy about his demise? Why was he wanted to be his friend when he still couldn't stand the other Rangers? He sighed as he opened his math book. He couldn't answer those questions so he might as well tackle other questions he couldn't answer.

* * *

><p>That night the Olivers sat at the table for dinner.<p>

"How was your first day back," Charlotte asked as she scooped up some mashed potatoes for Corey.

"Okay," Tommy answered, "I'm still a little tired and I walked into the wrong classroom. But at least I don't feel sick."

Charlotte placed a hand on his forehead and nodded. "No fever but if you start feeling unwell, let us know. How was your day Ryan," she asked turning to her husband.

"We are still trying to crack the James case. No leads yet. I'll probably be home late tomorrow. Steve and I are going to try to interview a suspect that is never home during the day. How was your day Charlotte?"

"Just fine. Usual bank stuff," she said with a shrug. "Though the President is trying to get the corporate offices to come out with a new check design exclusively for Angel Grove and Stone Canyon featuring the Power Rangers. Corporate still doesn't think they exist but he's trying."

"That's cool mom," Tommy said as he helped himself to some meatloaf. Sometimes Tommy forgot that people outside of Angel Grove and Stone Canyon thought the Power Rangers were made up. He ate about three-quarters of the food, as he still didn't have his full appetite back. "May I be excused?"

"Sure Tommy," his dad said looking down at the plate. "You sure you are feeling all right?"

"Yeah I'm just full," he said picking up his plate and took it into the kitchen. Corey followed right behind him.

"You wanna play a game," he asked.

Tommy shook his head. "Sorry I have a lot of homework." He saw the sad look on his brother's face and hastily said, "but if I have time afterwards I'll play."

Corey grinned and went back into the dining room.

Tommy went upstairs to his bedroom and took his history book out of the bag. For the next two hours he was so engrossed in his homework that he didn't hear the phone ring.

"Tommy it's for you," his mom called.

He picked up the extension in his room and said, "hello?"

"Hi Tommy," a cheerful voice answered.

Tommy grinned. "Hi Kim," he said as he looked at the clock. It was almost 9, which meant it was almost midnight in Florida.

"How are you feeling," she asked, "I've been so busy with practice that I haven't had a chance to call."

"It's okay and I'm feeling better. I went to school today and walked into the wrong classroom."

"Oh no," Kim gasped, "what did the teacher say?"

"Nothing. I left before the teacher came in. It was just Billy and Violet in there. I thought I was more behind then I feared until I found out it was physics and not advanced chemistry."

Kim giggled. "I bet. I'm glad to hear that you are feeling better. I miss you so much. Did you get the card I sent?"

"I did. Thanks. I miss you too Kim. How's training going?"

"Great but exhausting. Coach Schmidt has us training eight hours a day with an hour lunch. A couple of the gymnasts have dropped out. Alison says they weren't the serious to begin with. I don't know. Sometimes I wish I could come back to Angel Grove."

"Don't give up on your dream Kim. You were meant to be in the Pan Globals and you are going to win."

She laughed. "I wish I had your confidence." There was a pause. "I didn't realize how late it was. I better go. Night Tommy I love you."

"I love you too. Sweet dreams," he said and they hung up. He went back to his homework.

* * *

><p>Notes: This is not a slash fic so don't worry I'm not making a really weird couple.<p> 


	17. Hanging Out

Tommy opened his front door after school that day. "Mom," he called. His mother was usually home by now.

"I'm in the kitchen," she called.

Tommy led Rick into the kitchen where Charlotte was paying bills. She looked up and smiled. "Hello Tommy, Rick. Rick how are things at home?"

"Better," Rick answered. "My parents haven't threatened to throw me out of the house this week."

Charlotte smiled. "That's good." She turned her attention to Tommy. "How was school?"

"Better then yesterday," he answered. "Though I am still tired."

"Well if you and Rick go to the Youth Center today, I don't want you to do any sparring. I want you to take it easy for a few more days."

"Okay mom," Tommy said, "we were just here to drop off my books."

"Just be home by seven," she said.

"Bye mom."

"Bye Mrs. Oliver."

Tommy went up the stairs to his room and put his books away. Tommy and Rick left the house and walked to Tommy's truck.

"Hey can I drive," Rick asked. "My car's in the shop so I couldn't drive today."

Tommy handed him the truck keys and then got into the passenger side.

Rick got in and adjusted the seat and mirrors before starting the truck. He put the truck in reverse and hit the gas.

Bang!

"What happened," Rick asked looking around.

Tommy looked out the back window. "It looks like you hit our mailbox," he got out of the truck to inspect the damage. There was a slight dent in the mailbox and a scrape on the truck fender.

"I'm so sorry," Rick said as he got out of the truck. "So sorry about the mailbox."

Charlotte, who had heard the noise, joined them outside. "What happened?" She asked.

"I backed into your mailbox," Rick said sheepishly. "I'm sorry. I didn't see it."

Charlotte inspected the truck and mailbox. "It's okay Rick," she said with a sigh. "Accidents happen. Tommy you better drive."

Rick quickly handed the keys over to Tommy. They got into the car and drove off.

* * *

><p>On the moon Rita and Zedd were watching the interaction intently.<p>

"Your brother is going to mess this all up," Zedd said to Rita. "If Tommy wasn't such a nice guy he probably would have seen through Rito a long time ago."

"Rito may be an idiot but its working Zeddie. We can use this friendship and it will be Tommy's downfall," she cackled. She touched the power coin and watched Tommy flinch. "Ninjor was stupid to link the coins to their life forces but his stupidity will be our gain!"

* * *

><p>Kat looked at Tommy in concern. "Are you okay Tommy?" She asked.<p>

"Yeah," he said with a smile. "I'm not sure what happened but I got a little dizzy."

"Hope it wasn't from me hitting the mailbox," Rick said, "You might have whiplash or something."

"I'm fine Rick," Tommy said with a slight smile. "I feel better already."

"Do you feel up to sparring," Rocky asked.

"My mom wants me to take it easy the next few days so I better not."

"Glad to see you Tommy," Ernie said walking up to their tables. "Hope you are feeling better."

"I am, thanks. Thanks for the smoothies you sent."

"Hey no problem Tommy. I know how bad hospital food is. Would you guys like anything to drink?"

They gave them their orders and he left.

Adam and Rocky started sparring. Tommy rubbed his knee absentmindedly. He hadn't done any sparring since before he had injured his knee and he really missed it.

"I want to try karate sometime," Rick said, "I've been so busy trying to catch up at school that I haven't had a chance to." He watched Rocky and Adam and sighed. "It looks so hard."

"They've been taking karate since they were little," Aisha said, "but the karate instructors will start with easy things."

"That's a relief. With monsters around karate might be good to know."

"Thankfully there are Power Rangers around to stop them," Ernie said as he brought the drinks over.

The teens went back to watching Adam and Rocky spar. Never knowing the brewing storm that was awaiting them.

* * *

><p>Notes: This will actually be a 3-part story. I'd tell you the name of the third fic but that might give away what's going to happen.<p> 


	18. Moving Forward

Tommy tossed his backpack into the back of his truck after school. It had not been a good day. He was pretty sure he had failed his math test but he just couldn't focus long enough to study for the test the night before. He just didn't know what was wrong with him.

"Hey Tommy," Rick said coming up to him, "how'd you do on the math test?"

"I'd rather not talk about it," Tommy said as he fumbled in his jacket pocket for his truck keys. Where were they? He wondered. He had just unlocked his truck.

"Your keys are in your hand," Rick said trying to be helpful. "You okay man?"

Tommy stared down at his left hand, which was in fact clutching his keys. He had never been this forgetful. "Yeah I'm just kind of stressed about the math test," he said, "I just couldn't study last night."

"Busy night," Rick asked.

"Nah just couldn't concentrate," he sighed. "I just can't seem to focus anymore for some reason."

"Want me to drive?" Rick asked.

"I've seen you drive,' Tommy said with a smile, "I don't want to be worried you'll wreck my truck."

"So I backed into a mailbox once," Rick said, "it came out of nowhere," he said and then got into the passenger seat of the truck.

"You're lucky my parents were forgiving," Tommy said as he got into the driver's side of the truck. He had been giving Rick rides home from school the last two weeks as Rick said his parents had taken his car keys after finding out that Rick had hit a mailbox.

It was a quiet ride to Rick's house as both teens listened to the radio. Tommy pulled up to the Smith house and turned the truck off.

Rick turned to look at him a little startled.

"I was hoping I could come in and get a glass of water," Tommy explained.

"Uh you can't come in," Rick said, "my parents said I wasn't allowed to have anyone over today because the house was just cleaned," he explained quickly, "they are worried about the house getting dirty. I'll go get you a glass of water," Rick said before getting out of the truck.

Tommy watched him walk away wondering what that was about. He had been friends with Rick the last couple of weeks and he had never been invited over to Rick's house even though Rick had been at his house plenty of times.

He waited until Rick came out with a glass of water. Tommy drank it down and then handed the cup back to Rick. "I'll see you tomorrow," Tommy said before leaving.

* * *

><p>Rito waited for Tommy to leave before he let out the sigh. He couldn't believe he had almost blown it. He made sure the coast was clear before teleporting back to the Moon.<p>

When Rito arrived at the Palace he found Rita and Zedd waiting for him.

"You almost ruined it!" Rita screeched at him. "If Tommy was smarter he'd realize you were not his friend. It was a stupid idea to let you go down and pretend to be human."

"We'll just have to move fast," Zedd said. "When the chance comes we'll bring him up here."

"Why?" Rito asked.

"Not that it's any of your reason but we've decided we want the power now," Rita said. "We can harness his powers quicker if he's here."

"But won't that kill him?"

"Don't tell me you've gone soft!" Rita screeched. "What difference does it make if he dies? We'll have his powers."

"It doesn't I guess it just seems I don't know…too fast of a way to get rid of him. Didn't you want to torture him or something?"

Zedd laughed. "There is no easy way to harness his powers Rito. Now get out of here."

Rito walked away. Something told him he had to stop Rita and Zedd. He didn't know why but he couldn't let Tommy die. If it was another Ranger sure but not Tommy. He still couldn't understand why.

* * *

><p>A few days later Tommy still wasn't feeling well. He was feeling better then he did when he was in the hospital though. He was just having trouble concentrating and he was sure his teachers were starting to notice. He was starting to wonder if he should tell his parents so that he could go back to the doctor. The only thing stopping him was the fear of another hospital stay.<p>

He looked at his watch. He had ten minutes before first period. He got out of the truck and locked it. Rick said he was no longer grounded from driving and didn't need a ride.

Tommy walked into the school and over to his locker. He put in his afternoon books and took out his morning books. He was just closing the locker when Rick walked up and opened his locker.

"Hi Rick," Tommy said as he shut his locker.

"Hey," Rick said as they started to walk away from their lockers in order to get to homeroom. "I need to show you something."

"Now," Tommy asked. "The bell's going to ring soon." Tommy tried to make it a habit not to be late though he was rarely successful.

"I know but it will only take a sec," Rick said. He led Tommy outside. As soon as the coast was clear, there was a flash of light.

Tommy jumped back in shock. He had to be seeing things. There was no way that his newest friend was he. The person who he had told several secrets to was one of his enemies.

Standing in front of him was Rito.

Tommy pulled out his morpher.

"No Tommy don't!" Rito yelled.

He didn't pay attention. "It's Morphin time! White Ranger Power!" As soon as he was in his suit a ripple of pain went through him. "Ah!" He screamed. He felt like he was on fire. He pulled Saba from its holster ready to fend off anything Rito did. He just wished he could concentrate.

"Tommy you've got to power down," Rito said. "I'm not here to fight. I wanted to show you who I really am." He switched forms quickly.

Tommy reluctantly powered down. He started feeling better immediately but it didn't make him feel better about this situation. "What do you want Rito?" He asked.

"I just want to talk to you I promise!" He said holding up his hands. "I know about your power problems."

"Yeah because you caused it. I didn't start feeling weird until I _met_ you."

"Hey I wasn't the one who actually switched the coins," Rito didn't realize what he said until he was too late.

Tommy took the coin out and stared at it. "It's not the White Power Coin." He said as more of a statement then a question.

"I know," Rito said, "Tommy if you only knew what it's doing to you…"

"Why are you telling me this now?" Tommy asked. "I trusted you and you turned out to be my enemy."

"I'm your friend Tommy," Rito pleaded. "I wanted to warn you before something happened…"

There was a flash of light and Goldar appeared. "Too late," Goldar snarled.

Tommy knew he was in trouble with or without his coin. They were standing in front of Angel Grove High. He had to get them away from the school but how?

"Good job Rito," Goldar said turning to face Rito who was still in human form. "You may return to the moon. I will destroy the White Ranger."

"But…" Rito started to say but he was gone in a flash of light leaving Tommy in front of Goldar.

"Well well White Ranger," Goldar said, as he looked Tommy up and down. "Seems you have been betrayed by your friend."

Tommy glared at him as he got into a fighting position. He was wondering how he didn't notice Rick wasn't the person he claimed to be. But he seemed like a real friend and not his enemy. "Let's just fight Goldar," he said in response.

Goldar just laughed. "Don't make me laugh Tommy. You're in no condition to fight and besides, do you really want everyone at school to know that you are a Power Ranger do you?"

Tommy dropped his fighting stance. Goldar had a point. He didn't.

"Wise choice," Goldar said and then pointed his sword at Tommy causing Tommy to disappear. Goldar quickly followed.


	19. No Escape

When Tommy landed in the Moon Palace, he was immediately seized by a group of Tengas. He fought them off before he was nailed by a blast from behind. He fell to the ground panting for air.

"You have no chance of escaping Tommy," Lord Zedd from somewhere above him. "You might as well give in. It will save you a little bit of pain. Not much," he said with a chuckle.

Tommy reluctantly let the Tengas pull him to his feet mostly in order to get a better view of his surroundings. It had been a long time since he was conscious when he was in the throne room. "What do you want Zedd?"

"Your powers of course. If it wasn't for that traitor Katherine, we would have your powers by now." He held something in his hand for Tommy to see. "As you can see, we already have your coin. Now we have you as well."

"Zordon will stop you," Tommy said trying not to show his fear.

"You mean like the last time when he sent the former Pink Ranger to save you," Zedd asked. "Thomas we have taken every precaution to keep that from happening. Take him to the dungeon," he ordered the Tengas.

Tommy was dragged away. When they were away from the throne room fought his way out of the Tengas grasp. He tried to teleport out, but nothing happened. He tried to contact Zordon but all he received was static.

"Tommy," a voice said from behind him. He turned around to see Rito standing there half hidden in darkness.

Tommy got into a fighting stance ready to take on Rito. He was still having a hard time wrapping his brain around the fact that his newest friend was one of his enemies.

"Look Tommy I'm sorry," Rito said. "I was trying to warn you when Goldar showed up. I'm on your side."

"Why should I believe you?" Tommy asked not dropping his stance.

"I'm your friend. I…I didn't want this to happen."

"If you were my friend you'd help me escape."

Rito stared at him for a long moment before dropping his head.

"I thought so," Tommy said and started to walk away. There had to be a way out of here. Maybe if he could just find Rita's wand or Zedd's staff. But he knew Zedd was probably still in the throne room and there was no way he could go there. He wondered where Rita was but then immediately dropped that idea. He would have the same problem with her. What could he do? He decided to try to find Ninjor. If he freed Ninjor he was sure Ninjor would be able to teleport them both out of the Moon Palace.

He walked through the corridors of the Moon Palace unsure of where he was going.

"Tommy run!" Rito yelled from somewhere behind him.

Tommy didn't look behind him to try to figure out why. He took off at a run. He ran until he reached a dead end. He turned around to see Goldar standing there sneering at him.

Tommy got into a fighting position. He really had only one option. He knew this was going to hurt but if he could just get Saba.

"White Ranger Power!" He yelled.

He was enveloped in so much pain he could barely breathe. He took Saba from its holster and then quickly powered down.

He ran at Goldar with Saba in hand ready to knock him down long enough to escape. Escape to where he still wasn't sure. He attacked Goldar but the fight didn't last long. Goldar slashed at his arm and Tommy cried out in pain as he grabbed onto his arm, which was now bleeding. He was hit from behind and he slumped to the floor.

Master Vile just looked down at him. "So this is the White Ranger. Fighting till the very end. He stepped over the unconscious body. "Take him to wherever Zedd was sending him. I need to deal with my son."

* * *

><p>Billy walked into the Youth Center and found Rocky sitting at a table staring down at a history book. Billy went over and sat down. Rocky didn't look up.<p>

"What's wrong Rocky?" Billy asked. "You look perplexed. Is it the homework?"

"No," he sighed. "I'm kinda worried about Tommy. He wasn't in class today but when I was leaving school I saw his truck in the parking lot."

"Did you try to contact him?" Billy asked.

"I did but he didn't answer," Rocky sighed as he shut his history book.

Billy looked around before saying, "maybe we should tell Zordon."

"That's a good idea," Rocky said standing up. They both left the Youth Center.

* * *

><p>Notes: And we have the return of Master Vile. Things don't look too good for Tommy ;).<p> 


	20. Surprising Revelation

Rito couldn't escape the Moon Palace. Rita and Zedd were blocking anyone leaving the palace so he couldn't even try to warn anyone which also meant he couldn't help Tommy escape. He had to hope that Tommy realized that. But then again why should Tommy trust him? To Tommy he was just an enemy. Maybe he was but he was also Tommy's friend.

"Rito!" A voice was yelling.

He gulped. It was his dad. There was nowhere for him to hide. Somehow he wasn't surprised that Vile was there. Zedd and Rita had been saying they were going to call him in for a couple of days now.

"Rito where are you," Vile yelled.

He sighed and then left his room. "Hey pop."

Vile looked at him for a long moment. "All of these years and you betray us to help some Power Ranger. You didn't even stop us when we destroyed your team."

"What," Rito asked. What was his dad talking about? What team?

"Oh I forgot you don't remember that. Not that it matters," he said and raised his staff and fired at Rito. "That should fix the problem." He said and walked away.

Rito picked himself up off of the ground and wondered how he ended up on the ground.

* * *

><p>Tommy came to and found himself tied down to a table or slab. He wasn't sure which one it was from his position. He raised his head but he couldn't see anything. He tried to pull his arms free but the straps were too tight. For the first time in a long time, he was scared. The last time he was in the Moon Palace, he had been unconscious. From what Kim told him, he had been lying on a slab when she rescued him. She said he hadn't woken up until they were back in Angel Grove. He didn't remember that.<p>

"So this is the White Ranger," a voice said from somewhere above him.

A monster suddenly appeared in his line of vision. He tried once again to free himself. The man just laughed.

"Let me introduce myself," he said, "I am Master Vile. I am Rita and Rito's father. You will soon discover that I hate Power Rangers. I prefer to kill them but Rita and Zedd want to make this all slow and painful."

"Like you killed Rajon."

Vile hesitated for a moment. "How do you know about…I suppose Zordon would have told you about your predecessor. Yes I kill Rangers just like Rajon. Killed his mother too." He moved a machine into Tommy's line of vision. "Trust me, Tommy was it," he didn't wait for an answer before saying, "you will find this machine to be much more painful when you are awake." He flipped a switch.

At first Tommy didn't feel anything and then he was hit with a sharp stab of pain. He cried out in pain. Vile watched for a minute before turning and walking away.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile in the Command Center, Rocky had finished explaining what he had found today. Zordon listened without interrupting before he turned to Alpha 5.<p>

"ALPHA START A GLOBAL SCAN FOR TOMMY. WE MUST FIND HIM IMMEDIATELY."

"Ai yai yai," Alpha exclaimed. "I have started the scan."

The alarms went off.

"GOLDAR IS ATTACKING IN THE PARK. TELEPORT DOWN AND STOP HIM. I WILL NOTIFY THE OTHERS."

"Right," Billy said, "it's Morphin' Time!"

"Red Ranger Power," Rocky yelled.

"Blue Ranger Power," Billy yelled.

They teleported down to the park.

* * *

><p>Adam, Kat, and Aisha were in the library doing research for a history project when their communicators went off.<p>

The library was empty so Adam said in a whisper, "we read you Zordon."

"RANGERS GOLDAR IS ATTACKING IN THE PARK. YOU NEED TO STOP HIM."

"We're on it." Adam said. "Are we still clear Kat?"

Kat got up and looked around before coming back "The librarian just went into her office and there's no one else in the library."

Adam nodded before quietly saying, "it's morphin time!"

"Pink Ranger Power!" Kat called.

"Black Ranger Power!" Adam called.

"Yellow Ranger Power!" Aisha called.

They were gone in flashes of pink, black, and yellow.

When they arrived in the park they found Rocky and Billy already there fighting Goldar. Tengas immediately appeared to assist Goldar.

"Where's Tommy?" Kat asked as she attacked the Tengas.

"I don't know," Rocky answered. "He wasn't at school but his truck was in the lot."

"You shouldn't worry about your leader when you are fighting me," Goldar spat as he threw a blast at Kat. Kat ducked quickly and the blast hit a tree.

"What did you do to Tommy," Aisha demanded.

Goldar just laughed. "By the time you find him he'll be dead."

The fight continued. After awhile Goldar was enlarged. The Rangers called their Shogun Zords. Kat wasn't quite used to using the Shogun Zord by herself and struggled to keep control of it. She had never felt so useless in her life. The other Rangers were able to fight back and before they could destroy him, Goldar was teleported away. After the fight, the Rangers teleported back to the Power Chamber.

"I'm sorry," Kat apologized as soon as they were back in the Power Chamber. "I haven't piloted the Shogun Zord by myself before."

"We understand Kat," Billy said flashing her a smile of reassurance before turning to his mentor. "Have you found Tommy yet?"

"NO I HAVE NOT. THE ONLY THING I CAN SAY FOR CERTAIN IS THAT TOMMY IS NO LONGER ON EARTH. WE WILL CONTINUE OUR GALACTIC SEARCH FOR TOMMY. UNTIL THEN, I SUGGEST YOU CONTINUE WITH YOUR NORMAL ACTIVITIES. THERE IS NOT MUCH WE CAN DO UNTIL WE LOCATE TOMMY. I WILL LET YOU KNOW THE MOMENT WE FIND SOMETHING."

The Rangers were reluctant to do so but teleported out. Rocky and Billy teleported to the Youth Center while Adam, Kat, and Aisha teleported to the library.

"I'm new at this," Kat said as they went to the table they had been studying at. It was almost closing time so they were gathering their books. "What do we tell his parents?"

Her teammates exchanged looks. That was a good question. What were they going to tell the Olivers?

* * *

><p>Notes: I received a review saying they don't like short updates well the thing is I like them. When I first started writing Power Ranger fics over 14 years ago, I didn't post anything until it was all the way written. So that would take me a long time to write a story from beginning to end so that means you get short updates. Hope you guys enjoyed this and I hope you were surprised by the revelation regarding Rito.<p> 


	21. End Game Starts Now

Tommy was in a lot of pain. He was not sure how long he had been hooked to the machine, but he was starting to feel weaker. He was too weak to scream anymore.

There was a click and the machine moved away from him. He was so glad it was over but worried about what they had planned for him next.

Master Vile looked down at him. An evil grin on his face. "That wasn't so bad was it Thomas?"

Tommy didn't have the strength to answer him.

"That machine just wasn't getting the job done. So we are going to try something else."

Tommy was hit with a blast. He screamed and passed out.

Master Vile looked down at the White Ranger for a moment and then walked away. It wouldn't be much longer before he had one more Ranger's powers and life. It would be only minutes. He knew Rita and Zedd wanted to torture the White Ranger but it was taking too long. He had to get rid of the White Ranger before Zordon figured out how to save him. He left the room. He had to put his next plan into motion.

* * *

><p>Rito waited until his father had disappeared down the hallway before he entered the cell that he knew Tommy was in. He saw the small device that was on a table beeping. Tommy's eyes were closed and he felt a pang of guilt.<p>

He couldn't figure out why he was feeling guilty. Tommy was his enemy after all. A side of him reminded him that Tommy had been his only friend at Angel Grove High School.

Tommy flinched and the beeping got louder and sounded more urgent.

Rito looked over at the object and made a quick decision. He threw it on the floor but it didn't break. He grabbed Tommy and hoped they could get out of there. They were gone in a flash of dark light.

When they arrived in Angel Grove Park, Rito looked around wondering what he was going to do. He quickly changed into the image of Rick hoping no one saw him.

* * *

><p>Billy and Adam were walking in the park when they saw a flash of light. They prepared for anything but were not prepared for what they saw. Rick stood there holding Tommy up.<p>

"Rick," Adam asked in surprise. "What are you doing here? What's wrong with..."

"Rito!" A voice yelled from behind them. Billy and Adam spun around to see Goldar standing there. They looked around trying to find Rito but could not find him.

"Here," Rick said shoving Tommy towards Billy. "I've got this."

"What?!" Billy said as he caught Tommy who appeared to be quite dazed. What was Rick talking about? What did he have? "Rick what are you..."

"Rito!" Goldar yelled again, "Give me Tommy and I won't kill you," Goldar thundered.

"Uh uh," he turned to Adam and Billy who were staring at them in shock. "Teleport up to the Command Center. I..." he was starting to lose his bravado. "I've got this."

Billy and Adam didn't move.

"Go," Rick said pleading. "Tommy's not..." he shook his head. "Go."

"We can't just leave you here," Adam said still not understanding what was going on. Why was Goldar calling Rick Rito? How did he know about the Command Center? It dawned on him. Rick really was Rito but that didn't make any sense.

"Seriously I got this. Get Tommy out of here! He's…I don't know I'm not a doctor but it can't be good."

Billy nodded and moved Tommy over slightly so he could use his communicator. Tommy. He tried to teleport and nothing happened. "Adam you try," Billy said as he shifted Tommy's weight. As far as Billy could tell Tommy was conscious but he wasn't there it seemed.

Adam tried and nothing happened.

"Shit!" Rick said. "I…I don't know what to do," he said before charging at Goldar who just swatted him away.

"You think you can fight me Rito? You are nothing! Zedd and Rita want Tommy and I will get him back."

Billy set Tommy down knowing what he'd have to do. "It's Morphin time!"

"Blue Ranger Power!"

"Black Ranger Power!"

Nothing happened.

"Something's interfering with our connection to the Command Center," Billy said to Adam.

"We've got to get Tommy out of here," Adam said. Tommy's body was starting to glow white. "Rick, Rito, whatever your name is, we've got to go."

Rick looked over at them and shook his head. "I can't go. I've got to stop Goldar or he'll…"

Goldar teleported away.

"Well that was unexpected," Adam said.

"I don't …" Rick said but that was silly. He went over to Billy and Adam. "That can't be good," he said looking at Tommy. The light was starting to fade.

"We'll go to my house," Billy said. "I've got a lab and we can contact the others. There has to be a way to get through to the Command Center. We've done it before. Help me with Tommy," he said to Tommy.

"I'll just go…" Rick stopped. He had nowhere to go.

"You're coming to my lab so you can explain who you are," Billy said as he and Adam dragged Tommy through the park hoping no one was paying attention.

"But…" Rick protested but stopped. There was nowhere else for him to go. He followed the Rangers through the park keeping an eye out for Goldar, Tengas, and or a monster. He was not looking forward to explaining what had happened to Tommy. He hoped there were no sharp objects within reach when he did explain.

* * *

><p>Notes: Sorry to say we are nearing the end of the fic. There will be a third story however.<p> 


	22. Fading

When they arrived at Billy's lab Billy and Adam sat Tommy down in the most comfortable chair in Billy's lab. Billy closed the door to his lab and knew his father wouldn't bother him while he was in the lab.

"So who are you," Adam asked turning to Rick.

Rito sighed knowing the jig was up thanks to Goldar. "I'm Rito. I've been pretending to be Rick Smith."

"You've what?" Adam asked in shock as he started to dial Rocky's phone number.

"Yeah I was sent down to pretend to be human to spy on you guys."

The phone rang and rang so he hung up. Adam then tried calling Kat and found she was not home and knew Aisha was at the veterinarian office.

"Billy?" Tommy called softly. "Billy where'd you go?"

Billy turned around to face Tommy who was standing directly behind him. He had been trying to contact the command center and was having no luck doing so. "Tommy I'm right here." He said and placed a hand on Tommy's shoulder.

"Can…can you get Jason?"

Adam and Billy exchanged looks.

"Please? I need…I need to see him again. He…" he winced as his body started glowing again.

"Okay I'll do it." Billy said grabbing the phone from Adam. He hoped his father would understand him calling Jason.

"Hello?" A groggy voice answered.

Billy couldn't tell if it was Jason or Zack because the voice was so groggy. He had forgotten about the time difference. "It's Billy can I talk to Jason?"

"Yeah," the muffled voice answered. "Jason phone."

A few seconds later an equally groggy voice answered. "Hello?"

"Jason its Billy. I'm sorry for calling so late but we need you to come to Angel Grove as soon as possible. Tommy..."

"What about Tommy," Jason said sounding a lot more awake.

"He's," he wasn't sure how to answer that question. He didn't know how to describe Tommy at the moment. He was awake but not making a lot of sense. "He's hurt," he finally decided. "We really need you…" 

There was a flash of light.

Billy was baffled. "How did you…Jason our communicators aren't working how did you…"

"I don't know," Jason, said sounding surprised. "Where's Tommy?"

Billy pointed at where Tommy sat in the computer chair. Rick stood up quickly and backed up against the wall.

"Hi," Jason said looking at him curiously but his attention turned back to Tommy who was staring at something. "Tommy?"

"Jason?" The unsure voice of his best friend answered. "You are here!"

"Yeah," Jason turned to Billy.

"He can't see."

"What happened?"

Adam and Billy turned to Rick who was looking everywhere but at Jason.

"Who are you?" Jason asked.

"Rick Smith," Rick answered quickly not wanting to give the real answer.

Adam just shook his head as he picked up the phone and dialed Kat's number one more time. "Hi Mrs. Hilliard? Is Kat home yet?" He didn't say anything for a moment. "Could you tell her to call Billy when she gets home? Thanks." He said and hung up. "Kat's still not home yet," he informed the others, "and Aisha's still working at the veterinary office. Nobody's answering at Rocky's house."

"Okay," Jason said not knowing who Kat was but at the moment that was the farthest thing from his mind. "What happened to Tommy?"

"His coin was stolen again by Rita and Zedd. They kidnapped him and we aren't sure what they did but he's been like this since he came back."

"And he knows all of this how," Jason asked pointing at Rick.

"Uh I'm a good friend of Tommy's."

Adam sighed knowing Rito wasn't going to tell him the truth. "His name is really Rito Repulso. He's Rita's brother."

"What?!" Jason yelled. "What is he doing here if he's Rita's brother? Why isn't Tommy in the Command Center and why is he glowing?"

They turned to see that Tommy was glowing again.

"He does that off and on," Billy, said, "we were starting to ask Rito what they did when Tommy started asking for you. Now that we know that someone can teleport to Angel Grove, maybe we can teleport Tommy somewhere else outside of Angel Grove."

"Are you sure you should be talking like that in front of him," Jason said pointing at Rick who was standing as far away from Jason as possible.

"Hey look I'm the one who brought Tommy back from the moon," Rick said, "I wanted to leave but Billy and Adam insisted I come here."

"What exactly happened Rito?" Jason asked refusing to call him Rick.

"It all started when Rita sent me and a Tenga down to switch the power coin."

Billy's eyebrows rose at that. They had switched power coins? How could they not have noticed? Then he remembered the dizzy spells Tommy suffered. They had all dismissed it as the flu and physical therapy. Why hadn't they questioned it further? Why hadn't Zordon noticed?

The three teens listened as Rito explained how he had enrolled in Angel Grove High to spy on Tommy and how over the weeks he had developed an actual friendship with Tommy. He mentioned how he had stopped a couple of plans by Rita and Zedd to go after Tommy and they had sent Goldar down to kidnap Tommy at school one day. He talked about what Rita and Zedd did and Jason's face went bright red as he listened to the torture that his best friend had gone through. He had explained about how he finally got Tommy away from Rita and Zedd.

"And we are suddenly supposed to believe that you are a good guy," Jason said crossing his arms across his chest.

"I don't know if you can call me a good guy but I want to help Tommy. I could care less about the rest of you."

"Why do you care?" Adam asked.

"Because Tommy's my friend. And I don't know. I feel some kind of connection to him." They stared at him. "I don't know how or why but I do. I couldn't take watching them hurt him anymore."

Jason just shook his head. He still didn't understand what was going on but he turned his attention to Tommy who appeared to be unconscious. He wasn't a doctor or had any medical training but he knew something was wrong with Tommy.


	23. Blinding Light

Master Vile was not happy as he stared at the Earth. How did Rito break out of the spell? He had strengthened the spell he had put on him a couple of years ago but he still managed to help Tommy escape. Was he losing his touch? There was no way that Rajon should have re-emerged.

He tried to locate Rito on Earth but he was unable to locate him. He threw an energy blast at an unsuspecting Tenga and watched it blow up. He had the power he just didn't have the Ranger. He shook his head as a smile started to appear on his face. He could still launch his other plan.

"Rita, Zedd," he yelled. "Come we must attack now."

* * *

><p>"So what are we going to do?" Rito asked as he watched Billy working on his computer with Adam's help. Jason was talking quietly to Tommy who was conscious again though didn't appear to be lucid. He wasn't feeling comfortable in Billy's lab.<p>

Jason moved away from Tommy and grabbed Rito by the shoulder roughly. "I couldn't care less what you do Rito. My best friend might be dying and you had something to do with it!"

"I know. I'll just go." He said and walked to the door leading out of Billy's lab and tried to turn the knob. The knob didn't move. "You locked us in?"

"What?" Billy asked looking away from the computer. "I didn't lock us in. I just closed the door. Sometimes the door sticks."

Rito tried again with more force and the knob wouldn't move. "Well the knob's not moving."

Jason went over to the door and tried it. Nothing happened. "He's right. The door's not opening." He leaned even more against the door and that didn't help either. He kicked the door more out of frustration then of hopes that the door would open. "We are so screwed right now." He turned to face Rito who smartly backed away with hands raised.

"Something strange is going on," Adam said as he looked at what Billy was typing into the computer. "We aren't able to contact the Command Center and we are trapped in here."

Tommy stood up his eyes open but had a blank look on his face.

Jason rushed over to him and helped him sit back down. "Rajon?" He called.

"Who's Rajon?" Jason asked Billy and Adam.

"He was the Green Ranger before Tommy," Billy answered. "He was killed by Master Vile."

"Rajon?" He asked and he was looking right at Rito.

"I don't know why he keeps calling me Rajon," Rito said in confusion.

"He might be hallucinating," Billy, said also surprised by Tommy's behavior. None of this made sense.

"Can't you teleport out or something?" Adam asked Rito. He didn't want Zedd and Rita to find out that this was where they were but it was worth trying.

Rito tried and nothing happened. "Great even I'm stuck in here!"

Billy gave up on the computer. Nothing was getting through to the Command Center. Something was blocking the signal and he couldn't cut through it. They needed to get Tommy help but now they couldn't even leave his lab. He grabbed the garage door and tried to open it even though he figured Jason had tried that. Nothing happened.

Jason picked up the phone deciding to try to call Zack since he was able to get in; maybe Zack could help them too.

The phone was dead.

"Now the phone's not working," Jason informed the others. "I was going to call Zack."

"Something's wrong." Adam said moving away from the computer and walked over to where Tommy was slumped down in his seat. He put a hand on Tommy's wrist. He had gone through lifeguard training with Rocky but hadn't been hired. He had a heartbeat even if it was a weak one. Jason was right. They were losing Tommy and as long as they were in Billy's lab, there was nothing they could do.

Tommy sat up suddenly and his eyes were clear and he looked at Adam for a moment and smiled. "I'm okay," he said his voice starting to sound far away. "Take care of the others and tell Kim I love her okay? I'm going to be okay." He said and there was a bright flash of light.

The garage door started to open slowly. Adam looked back to where Tommy had been standing and Tommy was gone.

Jason moved over to the garage door opening and gasped at what he saw. "Oh my God."

* * *

><p>Notes: Horrible place to end it but there will be a third fic in the series. I know I left the chapter with two questions: 1. Tommy's gone as in…2. What did Jason see?<p> 


End file.
